ABSTRACT
The Neotteae have a free anther standing behind the stigma. Their pollen-grains are tied together by fine elastic threads, which partially cohere and project at the upper end of the pollen-mass, being there attached to the back of the rostellum. In Epipactis palustris, in the bud-state the anther stands quite free behind the rostellum and stigma; it opens longitudinally whilst the flower is still unexpanded, and exposes the two oval pollen-masses, which now lie loose in their cells. Epipogium gmelini plant, which has only once been found in Great Britain, has been fully described by Dr Rohrbach in a special memoir. In Listera ovata, the rostellum is of large size, thin, or foliaceous, convex in front and concave behind, with its sharp summit slightly hollowed out on each side; it arches over the stigmatic surface. In Spiranthes autumnalis, the tubular flowers are elegantly arranged in a spire round the spike, and project from it horizontally.
