To Daniel Oliver 29 [July 1862]1
Down Bromley Kent
29th
Dear Oliver
Thanks for Orchids.—2 I liked to see the strange labellum of the Catasetum new to me.—3 Cycnoches is considerably different; there is a truly wretched sketch of the genus at the back of my orchid Book.—4 Do not take any more trouble about it: I only thought that as I had carefully examined C. ventricosum, I shd. like to see its male.—5
Yours very truly | C. Darwin
I care more for Dimorphism now than orchids, & I think it is a more important subject. To day I have been looking at Lythrum & have seen the three forms;—ie long-styled—mid-styled & short-styled:6 as each form has two sets of anthers, 18 different crosses are practicable within the limits of this one species!! As I ought to cross 10 of each, this would make 180 fertilisations & markings & counting of seeds. A nice job, Heaven knows whether my patience will last; but I shd. like to make out this wonderfully complex case—
I enclose stamps not to cheat Kew.—7
Footnotes
Summary
Cares more for dimorphism now than for orchids. Today saw the three forms of Lythrum, which means there should be 18 different practicable crosses.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-3702
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Daniel Oliver
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- DAR 261.10: 55 (EH 88206038)
- Physical description
- 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 3702,” accessed on 23 February 2019, http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/DCP-LETT-3702
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 10