  ODONTOGLOSSUM LINDLEYANUM. DR. LINDLEY'S ODONTOGLOSSUM. O. (Euodontoglossum, Lindl.) pseudobulbis ovato-oblongis compressis diphyllis, foliis lanceolatis subcoriaceis acutis scapo racemoso multi-(5-12)floro vix brevioribus, sepalis petalisque lineari-lanceolatis acuminatis subÆqualibus, labello angusto unguiculato hastato utroque latere angulato in disco bifalcigero basi per carinam cum column connato. Columna tomentosa, auriculis erectis angustis acuminatis. Odontoglossum Lindleyanum, Reichenbach fil.: Warsz. Bonpl. ii. 69; Reichenbach, Xenia Orch. t. 71; Walpers, Annales. vi. fasc. 6. Odontoglossum epidendroides, Lindl. fil. (non Hb. Kth. N.G.). Habitat in Pamplona (in sylvis humidis), 8500 ft., Linden; OcaÑa, 9000 ft., Schlim; OcaÑa (floribus majoribus), Wagener; BogotÁ, Weir. DESCRIPTION. Pseudobulbs about 3 inches long, ovate-oblong, compressed, 2-leaved, sometimes a little spotted. Leaves lanceolate, from a span to a foot long, rather leathery, sharp-pointed. Raceme rather longer than the leaves, bearing from half-a-dozen to a dozen flowers. Bracts oblong, acute, about one-third the length of the ovary. Sepals and Petals nearly equal, an inch or more long, linear-lanceolate, acuminate, of a yellowish-green, with a few large chestnut blotches, the arrangement of which varies in different specimens. Lip shorter than the petals, narrow, unguiculate, hastate, 3-lobed; the lateral lobes forming two blunt angles, the middle lobe longer, linear-lanceolate, deflexed, with two large upright slightly-curved horns placed on either side of the disk; at its base the lip is keeled and united with the column after the fashion of the Trichopilias; its colour is usually a pale yellow or yellowish-white with large chestnut bands. Column downy, furnished near the summit with two narrow erect upright acuminate auricles. The name of this plant, associated as it is with the memory of the distinguished botanist who has lately passed from among us, is to me suggestive of the most melancholy reflections. Mourn indeed I must, the loss of one who had been my steady friend for five-and-thirty years, and by whose labours among the members of my favourite tribe, I have been enabled to follow a pursuit that has never ceased to be a joy and solace amid all the cares and vicissitudes of life![7] O. Lindleyanum was so named by Professor Reichenbach, in honour of the great Orchidist whose mantle seems now to have fallen upon himself. It is closely allied to the O. epidendroides of Humboldt and Kunth, from which indeed Dr. Lindley failed to distinguish it, but if the characters of the two species, as represented in the 'Xenia,' prove to be constant, no doubt the German Professor was right in separating them. Several travellers, including Schlim, Wagener, Warszewicz, and Weir, appear to have met with the plant in various localities in New Granada, but always at a great elevation, hence it must of course be classed among the coolest section of Orchids. It has flowered in the gardens of the Horticultural Society, to which it was sent by their zealous collector Mr. Weir, and also in the collection of Mr. Rucker, where Mr. Fitch made his drawing in the spring of last year (1865). Dissections.—1. Lip and column, seen sideways; 2. Ditto seen in front: magnified. Plate XII Odontoglossum gloriosum.
Odontoglossum gloriosum. |
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