Piperia elegans |
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chaparral orchid, coast piperia, elegant piperia, elegant rein orchid, hillside rein orchid, long-spur piperia, rein orchid, seaside rein orchid, wood rein orchid |
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Habit | Plants 12–73(–100) cm. |
Stems | swollen at base (rarely attenuate), 2–12 mm diam. distal to leaves; bracts (4–)12–37. |
Leaves | prostrate; blade 6–20(–38) × 1–9 cm. |
Inflorescences | usually densely flowered, cylindric, 2.5–40 cm; rachis shorter than peduncle; bracts 6–24 mm. |
Flowers | mostly white, fragrance strong at night; sepals white with green midvein, 3–7 × 1.6–3 mm; dorsal sepal ovate to oblong; lateral sepals usually widespreading, ovate-elliptic to oblong-lanceolate; petals spreading, recurved, straight, ovate to oblong-lanceolate, (3–)4–6 × 1.5–2.5 mm; lip recurved, pale greenish to white, triangular-lanceolate to lanceolate, 2.5–7 × 1.5–3.5 mm; spur usually deflexed, curved, (3–)7–14 mm; viscidia 0.4–1 × 0.15–0.5 mm; rostellum blunt. |
Capsules | 5–12 mm. |
Seeds | cinnamon brown. |
2n | = 42. |
Piperia elegans |
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Distribution |
w North America
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Discussion | Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora). [Key to subspecies contained in key to species.—Ed.] (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 26, p. 573. |
Parent taxa | Orchidaceae > subfam. Orchidoideae > tribe Orchideae > subtribe Orchidinae > Piperia |
Sibling taxa | |
Subordinate taxa | |
Synonyms | Platanthera elegans |
Name authority | (Lindley) Rydberg: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 28: 270 (1901) |
Web links |