2013 UK orchids (2 Viewers)

[heakl]

This one looks like the hybrid to me. It certainly has hybrid vigour, easily the tallest and most robust helleborine in the wood.

Leaves are broad (obviously so in comparison with the VH's), green and heavily veined. I considered them to be outside the likely range of VH.

The spike and flowers look exactly like the VH and nothing like BLH, arrangement of the flowers is a bit unusual in that they are all round stem but a couple of VH in the colony were almost there.

One BLH and several VH were found not that far away.

Sorry for the rubbish photos but unfortunately that's the best I can do, I'm now ready to be shot down in flames!

Alan

Humble pie for supper again, I went to the site again today and by good fortune met a couple of very knowledgeable friends. The consensus of opinion is that it is in fact an unusual Violet Helleborine.

The leaves are green but not green enough, they are also broad but not broad enough, they are noticeably ribbed but not too ribbed and the plant is obviously robust but not too robust, I think that's me making excuses for being wrong.

I think I'll sod off and find a ghost orchid!

Alan

 

[muba]

Humble pie for supper again, I went to the site again today and by good fortune met a couple of very knowledgeable friends. The consensus of opinion is that it is in fact an unusual Violet Helleborine.

The leaves are green but not green enough, they are also broad but not broad enough, they are noticeably ribbed but not too ribbed and the plant is obviously robust but not too robust, I think that's me making excuses for being wrong.

I think I'll sod off and find a ghost orchid!

Alan

Sounds like a new version of the story of the Three Bears and Goldilocks to me

 

[rmielcarek]

Humble pie for supper again, I went to the site again today and by good fortune met a couple of very knowledgeable friends. The consensus of opinion is that it is in fact an unusual Violet Helleborine.

The leaves are green but not green enough, they are also broad but not broad enough, they are noticeably ribbed but not too ribbed and the plant is obviously robust but not too robust, I think that's me making excuses for being wrong.

I think I'll sod off and find a ghost orchid!

Alan

Alan

don't beat yourself up.

I think all these plants are worth raising, if only to dispel the myth that Violets have clean looking flowers, with a pale interior to the hypochile and smooth bosses.

Rich

 

[muba]

A short walk in some old mixed woodland today resulted in two sightings worth noting.
Some helleborines not yet open but flower buds starting to appear. I suspect that this is the Green Flowered which is reported in the locality in similar locations. I may return to check in a couple of weeks.
Also one solitary Birds Nest found in the dead leaves just off a public footpath.

I returned to this place a bit later than intended, but found some of the GFH still in flower which confirms they were var pendula.
Not sign of that solitary BNO though.

 

[leptochila]

Last helleborines

Had a little stroll around Aberystwyth university campus looking for the BLHs I'd seen in previous years whilst walking to lectures during the winter. Plenty about though slightly past their best. Another road-side colony by the Rheidol river was in a similar state but one plant was still in good condition for pics.

Mike

 

[lizard orchid]

Had a single spike of broad leaved helleborine during 10km square bashing for the third atlas of the British flora near Brockhall in Northamptonshire today. It has gone over but it is producing a good number of seed capsules.
Need to check in the new Northants flora incase it is in a new tetrad.

Brian Laney.

 

[fgrsimon]

I believe this is a Broad Leaved Helleborine var monotropoides/albiflora at Lower Woods in Gloucestershire. That's what one of the wardens told us it was anyway....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53613503@N08/9532947861/

 

[leptochila]

I believe this is a Broad Leaved Helleborine var monotropoides/albiflora at Lower Woods in Gloucestershire. That's what one of the wardens told us it was anyway....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53613503@N08/9532947861/

Amazing colour on the flowers!

Mike

 

[Ghostly Vision]

We've had a few photos and comments this year about Broad-leaved flowers opening very wide and mimicking Violet Helleborine.

What about this Violet Helleborine with the flowers opening in the fashion of Broad-leaved?

Rich mentioned earlier in this thread about the difficulty of identifying the hybrid between these species, I reckon this photo probably adds to the difficulty.

Alan

Hi Alan

What do you consider the pro-BLH features?

Sorry to disturb your Ghost Orchid search, please carry on.

ps to those who contacted me about the co-ordinated Ghost search, I promise to be back to you with info to set you on your way. I'm going to have to write the "what to do if you find one" guide first to go with the site info.

Sean

 

[rmielcarek]

Amazing colour on the flowers!

Mike

Yes they are quite bright, especially compared with last years plant in the Peak district. There is also a normal plant with dark flowers a couple of feet away from it.

Also from the same, extensive, site - a Violet with a translucent hypochile and a Broad-leaved with a rectangular one!

Rich M

 

[leptochila]

Yes they are quite bright, especially compared with last years plant in the Peak district. There is also a normal plant with dark flowers a couple of feet away from it.

Also from the same, extensive, site - a Violet with a translucent hypochile and a Broad-leaved with a rectangular one!

Rich M

The plant next to the albiflora looks exactly the same bar the obvious lack of chlorophyll so you can quite clearly see how the anthocyanin overlays the chlorophyll to create the overall colour of the plant once the latter is removed as it were.

The Peak District plant was as you say quite pallid, much like the normal plants accompanying it though the flowers did open quite nicely. For those that missed it last year:

Mike

 

[LizandDave]

Some amazing flowers above. Regardless of what they are, just appreciate the beauty of them.
Dave

 

[IJS]

Just back from the Lake District where I stumbled upon a nice group of 6 broad leaved helleborines just in flower near Ullswater. I also found 4 heath spotted orchids still flowering at about 1000 ft up a hill.

 

[Chris Hind]

I checked the better two of the three sites where I found ALTs this time last year in the South Cumbria / North Lancs area - found a single spike which was just in bud. Rather worryingly, both sites were heavily grazed with large numbers of sheep present at the site where I found nothing. I plan to revisit in a week or so.
Chris

 

[rogpow]

I checked the better two of the three sites where I found ALTs this time last year in the South Cumbria / North Lancs area - found a single spike which was just in bud. Rather worryingly, both sites were heavily grazed with large numbers of sheep present at the site where I found nothing. I plan to revisit in a week or so.
Chris

I've just checked 2 sites on the I.W. that have been reliable for ALTs in previous years, and found nothing.
Equally worrying, both these sites have also been grazed by sheep this year.
I'll be checking another site in a few days.
Rog

 

[leptochila]

Welsh Bog orchid sites

Although a bit late in the season, an email from an Natural Resources Wales rare plant recorder pushed me to visit some of the sites scattered around the hills near Tal-y-bont. I started at a site high up at 380m where plants were last recorded in 2003 but after a half hour search, I located 2 spikes still in good condition. The next spot should have, in theory, been more productive with 23 plants recorded in 2008 but I couldn't find any in the given area so I jumped over the fence and tried the adjacent field. Near the top of this field I found a further 4 plants in a runnel/streamlet also in relatively good condition considering the time of year. One was quite large, probably the tallest Bog orchid I've seen to date.

Mike

 

[Wood Nymph]

Although a bit late in the season, an email from an Natural Resources Wales rare plant recorder pushed me to visit some of the sites scattered around the hills near Tal-y-bont. I started at a site high up at 380m where plants were last recorded in 2003 but after a half hour search, I located 2 spikes still in good condition. The next spot should have, in theory, been more productive with 23 plants recorded in 2008 but I couldn't find any in the given area so I jumped over the fence and tried the adjacent field. Near the top of this field I found a further 4 plants in a runnel/streamlet also in relatively good condition considering the time of year. One was quite large, probably the tallest Bog orchid I've seen to date.

Mike

Mike, you definitely have some sort of ninja skills when it comes to finding bog orchids man haha

 

[leptochila]

Mike, you definitely have some sort of ninja skills when it comes to finding bog orchids man haha

Haha thanks Steff, I'll put that on my CV! I've been pretty lucky tbh plus this year seems to have been a good one for Bog orchids.

 

[heakl]

Hi Alan

What do you consider the pro-BLH features?

Sorry to disturb your Ghost Orchid search, please carry on.

ps to those who contacted me about the co-ordinated Ghost search, I promise to be back to you with info to set you on your way. I'm going to have to write the "what to do if you find one" guide first to go with the site info.

Sean

Hello Sean,
You didn't disturb the ghost search but unfortunately it is unsuccessful so far.

Two photos attached that illustrate the typical perianth structure of BLH & VH.

Even when fully open the sepals and petals of Broad-leaved flowers arch forwards around the column and lip, they then often flick outwards on their tips, particularly so the sepals.

When Violet Helleborine flowers have fully open the sepals and petals are wide open presenting a virtually flat face with the column and lip fully exposed.

Like all identification indicators there are always exceptions, and that is what prompted my earlier remarks.

Alan

 

[heakl]

I believe this is a Broad Leaved Helleborine var monotropoides/albiflora at Lower Woods in Gloucestershire. That's what one of the wardens told us it was anyway....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53613503@N08/9532947861/

The plant next to the albiflora looks exactly the same bar the obvious lack of chlorophyll so you can quite clearly see how the anthocyanin overlays the chlorophyll to create the overall colour of the plant once the latter is removed as it were.


Mike

Surely albifolia rather than albiflora!

Alan