The Orchid Album, Volume 3: Comprising Coloured Figures and Descriptions of New, Rare, and Beautiful Orchidaceous PlantsMoore, Thomas
Science
The Orchid Album, Volume 3: Comprising Coloured Figures and Descriptions of New, Rare, and Beautiful Orchidaceous Plants
Moore, Thomas
Orchids; Orchids -- Pictorial works
There has been much controversy of late respecting this beautiful
_Cattleya_, the true character of the flowers of which will be seen at
once from our Plate, our artist having produced a very faithful
representation of the richly-coloured blossoms. We have seen the flowers
of two successive seasons from the very plant from which our drawing was
taken, and have noted that they keep true to character as regards
colour, and that in the second year the flowers were larger than in the
first, which may be accounted for by the plant having become stronger
and better established, the blossoms partaking of the general
improvement. It must not, however, be expected that every purchaser will
obtain a plant of the some character as that represented in our Plate,
as we have seen but few that have proved to be equal to the one we
figure. There is an abundant supply of plants imported as _C.
Percivaliana_, but they vary greatly in merit—more so in this than in
any other _Cattleya_ that has come under our notice. Many of the species
of _Cattleya_ yield variety both as to the colour and size of their
blossoms, though they are generally all good enough to cultivate or to
use as decorative plants; but in this particular species or subspecies
there are many that prove to be worthless, and unfortunately no one can
tell whether individual plants will be good or had until the flowers
expand. The good ones are really valuable, for there is no other
_Cattleya_ in which the lip and throat are so richly coloured; even in
the small-flowered forms there is a portion of this rich colouration to
be found on the lip.
Mr. Sander, the importer, has been no doubt deceived, and has suffered
great loss through importing a large quantity of plants, of which many
have had to be destroyed owing to their not being worth cultivating,
since the bad forms cost as much to import as the good ones; while the
collectors, when they do not see them in bloom, do not suspect that such
inferior forms can exist amongst the good ones. We have seen other fine
varieties, but none better than the one we have illustrated, and which
we received from the superb collection of R. P. Percival, Esq., of
Birkdale, Southport, after whom it is named. We received the flowers two
years before we ventured to submit the drawing to our readers, and to
vouch for its accuracy. We trust there may prove to be enough of the
better forms imported to supply all who may desire to possess the plant
in its true character.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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