Jas. (James) Bateman - A Monograph of Odontoglossum

At the time (1864) when this Monograph was commenced, the successful application of the system of cool treatment to Orchids accustomed to a moderate temperature in their native haunts gave a fresh impulse to the cultivation of that charming tribe of plants. By its means, what might almost be regarded as a new Orchid-world, teeming with interest and beauty, was suddenly brought within our reach. A fresh field was opened to the enterprise of collectors, the spirits of cultivators revived, and the hopes of botanists mounted high. Foremost among the spoils that we sought to secure, stood the various members of the genus Odontoglossum, which from the days of Humboldt 1 1 The mention of the illustrious traveller's name reminds me of the obligations under which he laid me when I first visited Berlin, in the spring of 1836; for, young as I was, he deigned to pour into my delighted ears all the stores of Orchid-lore collected during his memorable wanderings among the Andes of New Grenada and Peru. Here, he said, the greatest store of beauteous Orchids was to be found, and we are now beginning to realize the truth of his remark. and Lexarza, was known to abound in species pre-eminent for the loveliness and delicacy of their flowers but which had hitherto mocked the utmost efforts of our most skilful growers. For although (thanks to the labours of Warczewitz and Lobb) the Horticultural Society and Messrs. Veitch had more than once received large consignments of Orchids – among which were many Odontoglossa – from the mountain ranges of New Grenada and Peru, they had invariably succumbed under the stifling atmosphere to which, in common with the denizens of India, Guiana, or Madagascar, they were remorselessly consigned. Here and there, indeed, an accidental success was achieved in a greenhouse, but the hint was turned to no account, and as a rule – notwithstanding the repeated warnings and remonstrances of Mr. Skinner, Warczewitz, and others – for thirty years we persisted in the incredible folly of growing "cool" Orchids in "hot" stoves; so deeply rooted in the minds of horticulturists was the original prejudice! But it yielded at last, and no sooner had a few houses – constructed and managed on the cool-culture system – made it clear that the Orchids of temperate regions were prepared to submit to the skill of the cultivator, than a general raid was made upon the more accessible countries in which they were known to abound – more especially certain districts in Mexico and New Grenada. To the latter country, collectors were simultaneously sent off by the Horticultural Society, who despatched Mr. Weir; by Mr. Linden, of Brussels; and by Messrs. Low, of the Clapton Nursery; and all these rival envoys, much to their own mortification and chagrin, found themselves sailing for the same destination in the same steamer on the same errand!

It was now that the idea occurred to me of devoting a work of adequate dimensions to the illustration of the particular genus, which from the dried specimens in our herbaria, the plates in Pescatorea , the figures of Humboldt, and the descriptions of travellers was evidently destined to hold the first place among all the numerous company of cool Orchids; and thus began the present Monograph. I had expected that after the work of importation had fairly commenced, not only would the species described by Lindley and Reichenbach be easily obtained, but that along with these a multitude of others entirely new to science would likewise be received. In this respect, however, the results have scarcely come up to expectations; a circumstance that is partly to be accounted for by the difficulty attendant on their importation, 2 2 Cool Orchids from the interior of South America, have either to be carried across the Andes, where the intense cold of the passes is often fatal to them, or to be conveyed by a tedious voyage down the great rivers, where the heat is greater than their constitution – often delicate – can endure. In this way whole importations have been lost, including, I am sorry to say, one or two cargoes of the exquisite Odontoglossum Warczewitzii (figured in Reichenbach's "Xenia") which still unhappily remains a desideratum. but which is owing, I grieve to say, in a far greater degree to the untimely deaths of those zealous collectors, Bowman and Pearse, who, when in the very heart of the cool Orchid regions of Ecuador and Peru, succumbed under the pressure of their arduous labours. In Mexico, from which much novelty was expected, little has been added to the number of Odontoglossa previously known, and the same may be said of Costa Rica, notwithstanding the vigorous exertions of Mr. Endries. But in these countries it is evident that the genus is not so fully developed as in the mountain ranges of New Grenada, Quito, and Peru. From the latter country little indeed has yet been received, although the eastern slopes of its Andean chain are probably richer in species of unknown or unimported Orchids than any other portion of the globe. But we must await further improvements in the navigation of the affluents of the mighty Amazon, before we can hope to receive any large instalment of these much-coveted treasures.

A combination of the various causes referred to above, by limiting the choice of materials, has seriously delayed the publication of this work, which I had hoped would by this time have reckoned at least a dozen parts. But as there seems to be no immediate prospect of these hindrances to more rapid progress being taken out of the way, and as the sands of my life are fast running out, I have thought it best in the interests of my subscribers, to make the present number the last. The six parts now published will, however, form a volume of convenient size, and one which may, as I trust, serve to show how rich New Grenada is in the members of this glorious genus. What wealth of Odontoglossa Peru may possess, I must leave some future botanist to unfold. He will have a pleasant task, and will probably have doubled the roll of the genus as now known, before his work is done.

During the progress of this Monograph a curious incident has occurred, which may deserve a brief notice. When the publication was commenced, the introduction of two particular plants – more perhaps than of any others known to orchidists – was earnestly desired by growers, these two being the Odontoglossum crispum of Lindley, and the Cuitlauzina pendula of Lexarza. The finding, or rather the re-finding of the former – so magnificent were the specimens in the Lindleyan Herbarium – was declared to be worth a king's ransom; while for the latter – described as a native of Oaxaca – more than one collector had scoured that province in vain. Strange to say, they were already in our grasp : the O. crispum being none other than my O. Alexandræ , while – as explained under Plate VIII. – the Cuitlauzina proves to be identical with the long previously introduced Odontoglossum citrosmum of Lindley. Whether all the botanical pressure that can be brought to bear upon our cultivators may suffice to convert O. Alexandræ into O. crispum , or change O. citrosmum into O. pendulum , is an extremely doubtful question, so strong is the hold that the erroneous names have already secured on the public mind. In the parallel case of Wellingtonia , that popular Conifer – though now almost universally admitted to be a Sequoia – remains Wellingtonia still, and seems likely to do so for all time to come.

The range of the genus Odontoglossum , as may be gathered from the descriptions attached to the various Plates, is of a peculiar character, being at once restricted and extensive. It is restricted, for it never leaves the Andes, and it is extensive, for it is found in all parts of that vast mountain-chain, from the confines of Florida to the frontiers of Chili. As yet no species has ever been met with at a lower elevation than 2500 feet above the sea-level, nor, with the exception of O. hastilabium , has any Odontoglossum been known to descend so low; – the most usual altitude being 5-6000 feet, though a higher point is often reached. Like the humming-birds which frequent the same mountains, and vie with them in beauty, nearly all the Odontoglossa are exceedingly local, and in this way two of the most beautiful species, e. g. , O. vexillarium and O. Roezlii , eluded discovery for many years, even in a region supposed to be well explored by collectors.