UK wild orchids 2013

[SteveC2]

Surprisingly, given the length of the cold spell, not as late as I thought they'd be, our local wood has disappeared under a carpet of flowers, primroses, bluebells, anemones and best of all thousands of early purples.
First two shots give an idea of the habitat, and a lesson to photographers, watch out for rucksacks in the background!
Third is what I would call a normal plant, but surprisingly with last year's seed pod attached.
Fourth one of the giants, and fifth one of the pale pinks.

[SteveC2]

More photos from yesterday.
No. 6 is one of the whites, about a dozen in several thousand plants.
No. 7 has few flowers, but you got to love those leaves.
No. 8 a tight group showing variability.
No. 9 a varied trio
No. 10 I'm colourblind and sometimes struggle to spot the EPOs amongst the bluebells but this shade screams at me!

[SteveC2]

and saving the best for last, on the way back to the car park I found a small clump with the most amazing leaves, more spots then green.

Sadly a visit to a second local venue, about twenty miles away, but one which is on a far less water retentive soil revealed just a single clump of about eight plants, down from several hundred.  Throw away a match and the whole lot would go up in flames.  I do wonder if the rampant bramble coverage might be shading them out.  These spiny beasts are the reason for the poor photograph, ouch!

[mark smyth]

Thanks. Great to see the variation.

[K Andrzejewski]

Mike Gasson started very interesting, new research project (for every Orchid enthusiast) about Orchis mascula in connection to all other plants growing and flowering in surrounding areas. If you like I can send details
Kristof

[mark smyth]

Sounds great Kristof

[SteveC2]

Another trip out today, in search of Green Winged Orchids, Anacamptis morio.  The site is an ancient ridge and furrow meadow.  The plants are just coming, by the thousand, a little late this year, but given the weather we've had not as late as I thought.
No's 1 and 2 show the site.
3 a close up where you can see the green veins on the sepals that give the plant its English name and as morio means clown or jester I think that it is appropriate, unlike some of the names where you think that whoever came up with them must have been on the ale or the mead!
4 and 5 are normal plants.

[SteveC2]

And to continue the GWO tale, there is not a lot of variation at this site, just a very few paler plants.
No brambles either, just gale force winds, monsoon rains and I did not like the way the cattle were looking at me in field three of the seven I had to cross to reach the plants.

[Neil]

Now Steve they are nice cattle!

[SteveC2]

Give me good old friesians any day.  Don't trust those pointy things!

[Neil]

Frisians also have horns if they have not been dehorned!

[fermi de Sousa]

Another trip out today, in search of Green Winged Orchids, Anacamptis morio. 

Hi Steve,
We were at Great Dixter today and saw this little orchid in several of the grassed areas. Not one I'd seen before but a bit damp underfoot(or knee!) to get any really close shots.
Thanks for posting pics,
cheers
fermi

[Maren]

Last Sunday I went for an orchid walk with the BBOWT (Bucks, Berks and Oxon wildlife Trust) to Bernwood Meadows  and Sydlings Copse. Great walk, lovely views and nice variety of plants:
Anacamptis morio (Greenwinged orchid) in various shades including white,
Orchis mascula (Early Purple orchid),
and a few companion plants that caught the eye, such as the Adder's Tongue fern etc.

[Maren]

And a few more.

On the way back it rained and I went through a puddle, which turned out to be an almighty pothole. The impact burst my front nearside tyre, which came clean off the wheel !!! and I and spent a very pleasant hour listening to the radio and chatting with the AA man.

[K Andrzejewski]

I'm really jealous - permanently no time for "orchids hunting", soon I will don't remember how to do the pictures... Anacamptis morio - this is for me extraordinary species, very rare in Poland, in western part nearly extinct (including mountains!!). I'm buying since years tubers from all possible nurseries and growers and even I have not too bad collections now - but this is not to compare with this what I can see visiting just only one site in England (and I know only a bit south-eastern part of the whole country!!!).So many different shapes, colours and shades, just unbelievable. My partner - she will never go with me again, because I can walk on all fours two hours without brake and she want to call ambulance soon after half an hour

Maren - this is very funny story for me, your "Blümchen" - this is Cardamine pratensis. I took my Collins "British Wild Flowers" and have found - in UK it's call Cuckooflower… and since hundreds of years this is common name for Dactylorhiza in Poland (Polish botanists from the city Gdańsk argue about it since about 20 years, some of them call Marsh Orchids - "hundrets spots"). Even for ancient western Slavs tribes (Wends) from eastern Germany, Dactylorhiza was "Cuckooflower".
Kristof