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2012 UK Orchid season updates (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter heakl
- Start date
rmielcarek
Well-known member
I presume you meant belgarum Alan and not botteronii? Botteronii has sepaloid petals and whilst the petals on your plants are quite large they're not really sepaloid (I've noticed that belgarums often have large petals.
And I'm no expert!
Yes all the photos in posts 239 and 240, plus your belgolli in post 224 are all pretty much standard belgarums - it's quite a variable variety in my experience. In theory the right hand picture in post 240 (IMG_2762) doesn't fit the original description of this variant in that there isn't a clear cut yellow band going across the centre of the lip but, what the hell, it's got all the other features, the obovate lip shape and no side lobes. I've seen plants like that before.
Funnily enough I recently saw some photos of a whole patch of belgarumsand one of those had the yellow band across the middle and the obovate lip shape but it had distinct side lobes, in fact quite long arms. Maybe you'd like to post it sometime Helen?
Rich M
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Thanks Rich, boteronii, that would have been nice wouldn't it, don't know why that was in my mind.
palmarosa
Member
Belgarum Bees
[Funnily enough I recently saw some photos of a whole patch of belgarumsand one of those had the yellow band across the middle and the obovate lip shape but it had distinct side lobes, in fact quite long arms. Maybe you'd like to post it sometime Helen?
Rich M[/QUOTE]
Is this the one you mean Rich?
2 flowers on the same plant.
[Funnily enough I recently saw some photos of a whole patch of belgarumsand one of those had the yellow band across the middle and the obovate lip shape but it had distinct side lobes, in fact quite long arms. Maybe you'd like to post it sometime Helen?
Rich M[/QUOTE]
Is this the one you mean Rich?
2 flowers on the same plant.
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rmielcarek
Well-known member
Planning to go looking for Musk Orchids / Frog Orchids over the weekend (in between the football!)
The recommended site is in Hampshire, where there are a couple of thousand Musks according to my Harrap Guide. Are they easy to find/miss? I have an unfortunate ability to miss orchids even in large numbers, so any precise directions would be appreciated. PM me if you can help.
Anyone found any Frog Orchids at the same Hampshire site or anywhere I can get to on my weekly trek from Glos to Essex? Again PM me if you can help.
I can report that Bees in Gloucestershire seem to be more abundant this year than last.
Finally an update on the Glos Red Helleborine site - I found two plants near enough to the fence to photograph last weekend but neither look like flowering. Plants were tagged last year which made them much easier to see from distance but haven't been this year so far.
The recommended site is in Hampshire, where there are a couple of thousand Musks according to my Harrap Guide. Are they easy to find/miss? I have an unfortunate ability to miss orchids even in large numbers, so any precise directions would be appreciated. PM me if you can help.
Anyone found any Frog Orchids at the same Hampshire site or anywhere I can get to on my weekly trek from Glos to Essex? Again PM me if you can help.
I can report that Bees in Gloucestershire seem to be more abundant this year than last.
Finally an update on the Glos Red Helleborine site - I found two plants near enough to the fence to photograph last weekend but neither look like flowering. Plants were tagged last year which made them much easier to see from distance but haven't been this year so far.
leptochila
Well-known member
Embarked on a Shropshire Frog orchid mission today, with the main aim of locating potential meadows for the species in the Llynclys/Llanymynech area on the Welsh border. Frog orchids have had a huge decline in the county over the last 20 years to the degree that I wasn't hopeful but this is their 'stronghold'. Regardless, the area is fantastic for a wide range of other calcareous-loving species in the mosiac of meadowland and mixed hazel coppices. Initially I stumbled across some interesting (and thriving) Pyramidal orchids growing inside a deeply shaded woodland on bare ground - very odd. I've seen this before nearby at Wenlock Edge, anyone else encountered this?
It soon became apparent that Greater Butterfly orchids are extremely common in the area with plants occupying virtually all woods and meadows in strong colonies of very robust plants; later on I found one that was at least half a metre tall with 38 flowers! (see below for hat size comparison - I have a huge head btw). Amongst one very impressive colony was a plant showing black shrivled lips on every flower despite the flowers looking fresh and newly opened (also see below). Not come across this before either.
No Frog orchids but Twayblade, Bee, Common Spotted, BL Helleborine and Early Purple along with the others to make up for it under incessant rain!. An area worth a visit for anyone in North Shropshire.
Mike.
It soon became apparent that Greater Butterfly orchids are extremely common in the area with plants occupying virtually all woods and meadows in strong colonies of very robust plants; later on I found one that was at least half a metre tall with 38 flowers! (see below for hat size comparison - I have a huge head btw). Amongst one very impressive colony was a plant showing black shrivled lips on every flower despite the flowers looking fresh and newly opened (also see below). Not come across this before either.
No Frog orchids but Twayblade, Bee, Common Spotted, BL Helleborine and Early Purple along with the others to make up for it under incessant rain!. An area worth a visit for anyone in North Shropshire.
Mike.
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Hi Mike, don't know Shrops at all, but great to see huge butterflies. There are some nice colonies in the Chilterns but the only ones I saw of size were in kent. maybe that blackness has been caused by the incessant wet weather, and it's been cold too. Great pic of that poor soaked bee!
leptochila
Well-known member
Hi slatts
I thought that initially but surely similar damage would be on other plants too? Plus it's only on the lower half of the labellum. Weird.
Never seen them this size anywhere other than maybe Bulgaria but they tend to get munched by wild boar!
Mike.
Ghostly Vision
Well-known member
Hi Mike
Nice to see someone visiting less well known areas.....
I believe there are sites in that area which have both platanthera - did you come across any bifolia?
Sean
Nice to see someone visiting less well known areas.....
I believe there are sites in that area which have both platanthera - did you come across any bifolia?
Sean
Hi Sean, just to say I've seen both platanthera species at Llynclys, one of the sites Mike visited, large numbers of chlorantha in the woodland areas and a few bifolia on the common itself. We've also seen Adders Tongue and Moonnwort there, though it's a long time since we saw the Moonwort.
Jeff
PS: also found var rhodochila of Common Spotted Orchid at Alyn Waters yesterday, see post on WAB
Jeff
PS: also found var rhodochila of Common Spotted Orchid at Alyn Waters yesterday, see post on WAB
leptochila
Well-known member
No bifolia guys! But I didn't venture much onto the common itself if I'm honest - the rain got a bit too much to hang about for long. Were they hard to find Jeff?
I forgot the mention I also visited another nearby site called Craig Sychtyn (a small wooded limestone escarpment with pockets of grassland) nearby that held frog orchids until about 2003. Looks like the Shropshire Wildlife Trust lost interest in keeping open grassland for the plants because the whole area is now thickly wooded. Shame!
Mike.
I forgot the mention I also visited another nearby site called Craig Sychtyn (a small wooded limestone escarpment with pockets of grassland) nearby that held frog orchids until about 2003. Looks like the Shropshire Wildlife Trust lost interest in keeping open grassland for the plants because the whole area is now thickly wooded. Shame!
Mike.
hi
Just thought I'd give an update on orchids in northern Scotland! I've been up here for a short trip and seen a number of interesting orchids. So here goes...
Coralroot orchids are still out on the northern coast near Spay bay.
Northern marsh orchids are plentiful there too. Seen loads of these orchids in many spots on my travels. A friend has several 100 in his garden!
Heath spotted are now flowering up here.
Heath fragrant are just starting. Lowest flowers are opening up so have finally seen this species in flower!
Lesser butterfly are again just starting to open up - Spayside.
Today I found 3 incredibly small early marsh orchids growing on the side of a hill just outside Braemar. Very unexpected, I was looking for alpines at the time! Found several early marsh on the east coast near Montrose. Much more normal size though.
Creeping tresses are so close to flowering up here now too. They will be out next week. Sadly I will be back home and working by then though...
Finally the small white orchid is now in flower, again Spayside. This is a first for me so was very happy to find it in flower!
Ian
Im told lesser twayblade is in flower 'everywhere' but never found any. One for next time...
Just thought I'd give an update on orchids in northern Scotland! I've been up here for a short trip and seen a number of interesting orchids. So here goes...
Coralroot orchids are still out on the northern coast near Spay bay.
Northern marsh orchids are plentiful there too. Seen loads of these orchids in many spots on my travels. A friend has several 100 in his garden!
Heath spotted are now flowering up here.
Heath fragrant are just starting. Lowest flowers are opening up so have finally seen this species in flower!
Lesser butterfly are again just starting to open up - Spayside.
Today I found 3 incredibly small early marsh orchids growing on the side of a hill just outside Braemar. Very unexpected, I was looking for alpines at the time! Found several early marsh on the east coast near Montrose. Much more normal size though.
Creeping tresses are so close to flowering up here now too. They will be out next week. Sadly I will be back home and working by then though...
Finally the small white orchid is now in flower, again Spayside. This is a first for me so was very happy to find it in flower!
Ian
Im told lesser twayblade is in flower 'everywhere' but never found any. One for next time...
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You'll fall over the musks and some large ones too. last year I saw a few of the smaller ones bouncing back after being crushed by a picnic blanket! And there is a Red helleborine site close by.
As mentioned in the thread about them, I went to look for the Creeping Lady's Tresses at Holt today. Didn't find anything, and the warden says he hasn't seen any there this year either.
I may have been too early, but I'd still expected to see at least a rosette or two...
I may have been too early, but I'd still expected to see at least a rosette or two...
Bees and Frogs
A great day out in the West Country. First stop Somerset for wasp orchids (close to going over) greater butterfly and bee. Next was bee x fly hybrid (almost over) plus a pyramidal alba. Then down into Dorset for the Bee Atrofuscus (still buds on plant) and last of all back over into Hampshire for frog orchids (one in flower, the others in bud)
Nick
A great day out in the West Country. First stop Somerset for wasp orchids (close to going over) greater butterfly and bee. Next was bee x fly hybrid (almost over) plus a pyramidal alba. Then down into Dorset for the Bee Atrofuscus (still buds on plant) and last of all back over into Hampshire for frog orchids (one in flower, the others in bud)
Nick
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rmielcarek
Well-known member
Kent
We were in Kent on Friday and I managed a couple of hours at three sites.
The first two sites were both Late Spider colonies and we managed to find a total of 75 plants, including one with a rather washed out, yellowy lip. We also found a Common Spotted with unpigmented pollinia but pale markings on the lip.
It was blowing a gale so I was reduced to holding onto the plant stems.
Rich M
We were in Kent on Friday and I managed a couple of hours at three sites.
The first two sites were both Late Spider colonies and we managed to find a total of 75 plants, including one with a rather washed out, yellowy lip. We also found a Common Spotted with unpigmented pollinia but pale markings on the lip.
It was blowing a gale so I was reduced to holding onto the plant stems.
Rich M
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