MALAXIS PALUDOSA. MARSH MALAXIS.
MALAXIS paludosa ; foliis subquaternis apice scabris, scapo pentagone, labello concavo acuto. Willd.
MALAXIS paludosa. Swartz Act. Holm. 1789. p . 127. I 6. f 3. Smith E n g l Bot. t 73. F l
B rit. p. 940. With. Bot. A rr. ed. 4. vol. 3. p. 39- Hoffm. Germ. ed. 3. vol l. F . U.
p. 178. Willd. Sp. P I vol. 4. ». 91. Pers. Syn. P I vo l 3. p. 5 14. Alton Hort. Kew.
ed. 2. ml. 5.p . 208. Hook. Fl. Scot. P . I. p. 235.
OPHRYS paludosa. Linn. Sp. PI.- p. 134]. Huds. Angl. P- 389. Light/. Scot. p. 525. Rose
Elements o f Botany, App. p. 450. t. 2 . / . 3. Fl. Dan. t. 1234.
ORCHIS minima bulbosa. Ran Syn. p. 378.
Class a n d O r d e r . GYNANDRIA MONANDRIA.
[N a tu r a l Or d e r . ORCHIDEiE. Juss., Decand., Brown., Hook.]
Ge n . Ch a r . Zaldlum explanatum, indivisum, sessile (smpius posticum). Petala quinque angusnora, patula vel
deflexa. Masses pollinis quatuor, paralleliE, apicibus stigmati affix®. B r . m Hort. Kew.
Ge n . Ch a r . Lip plane, undivided, sessile, (often exterior); five segments o f the perianth narrower, spreading
or deflexed. Masses o f pollen four, parallel with each other, fixed to the stigma by their extremities. B r.
R a d ix bulbis duobus parvis, subrotundis, viridi-albis, I
pubescenti-squamosis basi radicantibus.
Ca u l is vix digitalis, basi solutnmodo foliosus, superne
nudus, angulatus (pentagonus ?).
Folia subquaterna, late ovata, insigniter concava, sub-
nervosa, basi vaginantia, apice obtusa, papillis
plurimis scabra.
Flores plurimi, spicati, flavo-virides.
B racteæ lanceolatæ, germini appressæ, atque eo bre-
viores.
Corolla : Petala tria exteriora oblongo-ovata, plani-
uscula, oequalia, viridia ; quorum duo superiora
erecta : duo lateralia dimidio minora, recurvata,
viridia : sextum, vel Labellum, posticum, erec-
ovatum, concavum, viridi-lineatum.
Column-a perbrevis.
A n t h e r a infra apicem inserta, basi, ut mihi videtur,
affixa, pallide flava.
M assas po l l in is quatuor, flavo-virides, per paria glan-
dula unitæ, et apici stigmatis affixæ.
G e rm e n oblongo-pyriforme, basi in pedicellum brevem
attenuatum, costatum, paululum curvatum, non
tortuosum. Stigma vix concavum.
Root consisting o f two small, almost round, greenish-
white bulbs, which are rough with hair-like scales
and rooting at the base.
St em o f about a finger’s length, leafy at the base alone,
naked above, angular (five-sided ?).
Leaves generally quaternate, broadly ovate, remarkably
concave, somewhat nerved, sheathing at the base,
obtuse at the point, rough with many papillae.
Flowers numerous, spicate, yellow-green.
Brac teas lanceolate, appressed to the germen and
shorter than it.
Corolla : the three outermost Petals between oblong
and ovate, flatfish, equal, green, the two upper
ones o f these e re ct; the two lateral petals twice
as small, recurved, green : the sixth, or Lip,
placed behind, erect, ovate, concave, streaked
with green.
Column very short.
A n t h e r inserted below the point, or, as it appears to
me, by its base ; o f a pale yellow colour.
P ollen-masses four, yellowish-green, united in pairs
by a gland, and fixed to the point o f the stigma.
G e rm e n o f an oblong pear-shape, narrowed a t the base
into a short footstalk, ribbed, slightly curved,
not twisted. Stigma slightly concave.
Fig. 1. Flowering, and Fig. 3. Sterile, plants of Malaxis paludosa ; natural size. Fig. 3. Front view of a flower,
Ta the lip ) Fig. 4. Back view of a flower, (a the lip). Fig. 5. Column of fructification, with the lip (a), and
one of the outer and lowermost petals of the corolla. Fig. 6. Back view of the column, with (a) the gland by
means of which the .pollen-masses are fixed to the extremity of the stigma. Fig. 7. Front view of the column,
the anther-case partially separated, and exhibiting the pollen-masses within. Fig. 8. Front view of the column,
with (a) the anther-case (which appears to me always fixed by its base) forced back to display the whole of the
pollen masses. Fig. 9. Extremity of a leaf :—all but Figs. 1 and 3 more or less magnified.
The minute structure of the flowers of this rare orchideous plant renders their investigation extremely difficult.
If however, I am correct in what I have figured and described, the genus Malaxis can scarcely continue to rank
under the fourth division of the family, as arranged by Mr. Brown in the Hortus Kewensis. The anther is rather
lateral than terminal ; and the anther-case does not seem to separate wholly from the stigma, but to remain
attached by its base, opening, however, from the extremity on both sides, to allow the falling out of the pollenm£
The"whole plant is highly curious. Its bulbs are above-ground, and from between them is sent down a small
white tap-root. The leaves, besides being singularly concave, have a number of rough points or glands at their
extremity ; and the lip is constantly placed uppermost in the jflower, so that a person who examines the inflorescence
without sufficient attention, would be liable to mistake one of the outer petals of the corolla for the labellum.