ORCHIDS OF THE SIKKIM-HIMALAYA.
petiole, 4 to tí in. long and about '8 in. broad; the potiolo -5 to '75 ¡a. Scape
crect, slender, usually slightly longer than the leaf; the peduncle about equal to the
raceme, with a few small scattered bracteoles; raccme umny-fiowered; floial bract
minute, half aa long as the shortly-stalked ovary, lanceolate. Flowers about -So in.
long, yellowish-white. Sepals sub-equal, lanceolate, with broad bases and acuminatc
apices; the lateral rather broader at the base than the dorsal; all sub-connivent. Petals
half as long as the sepals, oblong, sub-acute, the edges ciliolate. Lip thick, oblong,
s l i g h t l y wider at the broad obtuse smooth apex, shortly clawed at the base; the upper
s u r f a c e with an elongate depression near the base, the edges ciliolate especially towards
t h o base. Column short, its apical teclh minute, narrow, the foot short and almost
s t r a i g h t . Anther with a papillose crest. Hook. fil. Fl. Br. Ind. V, 764.
Sikkim; in tropical valleys ascending to -4,000 feet; Thomson, King, Pantliog
No. 245; in flower in September.
I n habit this somewhat resembles B. (jymnopiis; the inflorescence is like that of
B. hiriam, but the raceme is quite erect, not drooping as in B. hiriim. Moreover that
specics has 2-leaved pseudo-bulbs.
Pi-AiE lie.—Bulbopftyllwn Thonrwni, Hook, fil, A plant; of naixiral ««sc. Fig. 1 a flower with
stalked ovary and Lraet, 2 put of ovary, ooluma and its foot, and the lip, sceji from the side, 3 the
petals, 4 lip, 5 column anl its foot, seen from the front, 6 anther, 7 pollinia; all enlarged.
29. BOLBOPHYLLUM HIRTUM, Lindl. in Wall. Cat. 1989; Gen. and Spec. Orchid., 51.
Rhizome about -2 in. thick; pseudo-bulbs close together, ovoid-oblong, terete, with a
scarious terminal collar, 1 to 1-5 in. long. Leaoes in paii-s, flaccid, absent at flowering
time, oblong-lanceolate or oblong-oblanccolate, sub-acute, nan-owed towards the cquitant
base ; length 4 to 9 in., breadth -75 to 1-75 in. Seape longer than the leaves, stout,
orect, with one or two small remote bracts. Spike about from one-thii-d to one-half of
t h e length of the erect peduncle, densely-flowered, pendulous; floral bract ovate, acute,
enth-c, shorter than the sessile pubescent ovary. Flower i •25 to -3 in. long, imbricate,
gi'cen. Sepals unequal; the lateral pair falcate-lanceolate, caudato-acuminate, converging;
t h e dorsal smaller, not acuminate, not spreading; all gi-cen and pubescent on the outer sm-face,
w h i t e on the inner. Petals only a third of tho lengt h of the sepals, ovate, with acute apices
a n d ciliolate edges. Lip oblong, decurved from the base; the apex broader, einai-ginate and
decurved, its upper surface with broad papillose margins and an elongate central glabrous
gi'oove. Column sliort, its apical spurs minute; tho foot much curved. Anther conical,
compressed at the apex, and with a broad vertical papillose green band down the centre;
pollixia obovoid, minute. Hook. fil. Fl. Br. Ind. V, 763. D. suave, Griff. Notul. Ill, 292.
Slelis hirta, Smith in Rees' Cyclop, XXXIV. Tribrnckls hiria, Lindl. Coll. Bot. 41.
S i k k i m ; at elevations of 3,000 to 6,000 feet; common. Pantling, No. 9; in flower
f r om October to January. Distributed westwards to Nepal and eastwards to the Khasia
Hills, and also to the Burmese hill ranges.
T h e sepals are. of the palest yellow-green outside and white inside, and the lip
i.s yellow. The whole plant smells of Aithoxanthum O'hralum, and is much prized on
account- of its fragrance by the Lepclia aborigines, whose name for it is " Sur-voo-reep."
A l l i e d to this are the Burniese specie^ B. comosum, Collett and Hemsley, and B. auricomim,
lindl.
CIEJiHOPEl'ALUM,
PLATE n7.—Bulbop//>/llum hirtuw, Lindl. A plant; of natural size. Fig. 1 the petals, 2 flower,
ovary and bract, 3 lip, 4 ovary, column and its foot aud the lip, 5 anthor, 6, pollinia; alt enlarged.
7. Cirrhopetalum, Lindl.
E p i p h y t a l ; usually with a creeping rhizome, but sometimes coespitose; pseudo-bulbs
l - r a r e l y - 2 leaved. Leaves usually solitary from each pseudo-bulb, coriaceous and pers
i s t e n t ; rarely in pairs, membranous and deciduous. Scape rising from the base of a
pseudo-bulb. Flowers usually in whorled umbels, sometimes capitate, rarely racemose,
o f t e n dorsally compressed. Dorsal sepal concave, short, rarely half as long as tho lateral
pair, and usually much shorter ; lateral sepals usually much elongate and acuminate,
oblique, often cohering by their inner edges, the bases adnate to the sides of tho
column or of its foot. Petals shorter than the dorsal sepal. Lip small, tumid, usually
e n t i r e , n I w a y s shorter than the dorsal sepal, jointed to the end of the foot of the
column aud more or less mobile. Cdiimn short ; i t s apex with two (rarely four) toothlike
appendages ; the foot more or less produced. Anther bilocular ; pollinia 4, cohering
in a single mass and sometimes attached by their lower ends to a mass of viscid
t i s s u e ; the inner two usually small and lamelliform.
A genus of about forty speoies, chiefly Indo-Malayan ; very olos9ly allisd to BulbophyUum, and not
separated from that genus by auy really good character, but aitiScially distinguished by the shortness
of the dorsal and the great length of the lateral sepals, and by the flowsra beiug usually ia whorled
;jmbels, rarely in racemes or heads.
Pollinia without any viscus.
•Lateral sepals cohering to their apices, or almost to theii apices, to form
a flattened blade.
Leaves in paii-s from coespitose pseudo-bulbs, caducous; flowers in
drooping racemes.
Dorsal sepal more than half as long as the lateral pair . . 1. G. viridiflorum.
Dorsal sepal oaly about oiie-f:enth of the length of the lateral
pair 0. rofrao'.um.
Leaf solitary ; pseudo-bulbs borne on an elongated creeping rhizome.
The blade formed by the lateral sepals narrow and tapering
near the apex.
Seapo halt as long as the leaf; flowers 1-5 in. long;
pseudo-biilbs 1-75 to 2 in. long 3. C. eorntitam.
Scape equal to or exceeding the leaf ; flowers '75 to 1 in.
b n g ; psoudo-bulbs '65 to 1-2 in. long . . . h. 0. Walliehii.
Scape not much longer than the pseudo-bulb . . . 5. O. hrevipee.
The blado formed by the lateral sepals broader at the apes
than the base.
Scope and umbel only twice as long as the pseudo-bulbs
and much shorter than the leaf G. Q. boolaneim.
l?Oftpe much longer tban tho pseudo-bulbs, bnger than or
nearly as long as the leaf.
Uorsal sepal and petals not ciliate ; the petals awned
at the apes aud with erose margins; the apex of
tho lip emarginafe 7. C. Andermii.
Dorsal sepal and petals with ciliate edges, the apex of
t i e lip entire . . S. C. Sikhmenss.