Platanthera huronensis |
Platanthera nivea |
|
---|---|---|
great lakes rein orchid, green bog orchid, Huron green orchid, Lake Huron bog green orchid, northern green bog-orchid |
snowy orchid |
|
Habit | Plants 10–100 cm or more. | Plants 17–90 cm. |
Leaves | few–several, ascending, scattered along stem, gradually reduced to bracts distally; blade oblong to linear-lanceolate, 5–30 × 0.6–7 cm. |
1–3, ascending to spreading, abruptly or gradually reduced to bracts distally, often fugaceous and withered at anthesis; blade linear to linear-lanceolate, 3–31 × 0.3–2 cm. |
Spikes | very lax to very dense. |
dense. |
Flowers | resupinate, not showy but sometimes conspicuous, whitish green; corolla often whiter than calyx; lateral sepals spreading to slightly reflexed; petals ovate- to lance-falcate, margins entire; lip descending or apex adhering to dorsal sepal and petal apices, lanceolate to nearly linear, without basal thickening, 5–12 × 2–4 mm, base slightly to rather markedly rounded-dilated, margins entire; spur slenderly cylindric to clavate, 4–12 mm, apex usually slenderly tapered; rostellum lobes divergent, directed downward, very small, obscure, rounded; pollinaria straight; pollinia remaining enclosed in anther sacs; viscidia oblong; ovary rather slender to stout, mostly 6–15 mm. |
not resupinate, showy, white; lateral sepals spreading; petals linear-oblong to oblong or elliptic, falcate, basally somewhat dilated, margins entire; lip reflexed ± at middle, linear-elliptic to linear-oblong, without basal thickening, 3–8 × 1–3 mm, margins entire; spur slenderly cylindric, 10–18 mm; rostellum lobes directed downward, very short, obscure, rounded; pollinaria straight, pollinia remaining enclosed in anther sacs; viscidia oblong to linear-oblong; ovary slender, 4–12 mm. |
2n | = 84. |
|
Platanthera huronensis |
Platanthera nivea |
|
Phenology | Flowering Jun–Aug. | Flowering summer (May–Sep). |
Habitat | Wet meadows, tundra, marshes, fens, stream banks, shores, ditches, seeping slopes, roadsides | Moist pine barrens, pine savannas, meadows, wet sandy woods, bogs, and cypress swamps |
Elevation | 0–3300 m (0–10800 ft) | 0–500 m (0–1600 ft) |
Distribution |
AK; CO; CT; ID; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OR; RI; SD; UT; VT; WA; WI; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NL; NS; ON; PE; QC; YT
|
AL; AR; DE; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; NJ; SC; TX
|
Discussion | Northwestern plants commonly treated as Platanthera hyperborea var. viridiflora (Chamisso) Kitamura (note Kitamura’s priority over Luer) are P. huronensis; Chamisso’s name furthermore is synonymous with P. stricta. Aleutian and coastal Alaskan plants are often short, stout, and broad-leaved, and they have incorrectly been referred to 9. P. convallariifolia. Platanthera huronensis as here delimited does not auto-pollinate in the manner of P. aquilonis. Occasional plants and populations that may be referable to P. huronensis, however, exhibit the movement of pollinia typical of P. aquilonis. These plants might reflect infraspecific variation within an allotetraploid species, result from hybridization, or constitute a distinct taxon. The relationship of some of these plants to P. hyperborea needs study. Platanthera huronensis is typically intensely fragrant with the sweet, pungent scent of some related species. Platanthera huronensis is known to hybridize with P. dilatata; it may hybridize with other species as well. Although hybrids of P. dilatata and P. aquilonis may occur, the name traditionally used for them, P. ×media (Rydberg) Luer is a synonym of P. huronensis. See notes under 10. P. aquilonis and 8. P. hyperborea. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
The column of Platanthera nivea is similar to that of P. clavellata and P. integra and unlike that of other Platanthera species. The columns of these three species bear two pairs of appendages. In P. nivea, on either side of the column and flanking the anther sacs, a cushionlike flap simulates a pollinium; below these structures, elongated slender processes parallel the basal margins of the lip, similar to the situation in Habenaria. Together with its non-resupinate flower and perhaps elongate-spheroidal tuberoids, these characteristics suggest that this species should not be included in Platanthera. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 26. | FNA vol. 26, p. 570. |
Parent taxa | Orchidaceae > subfam. Orchidoideae > tribe Orchideae > subtribe Orchidinae > Platanthera | Orchidaceae > subfam. Orchidoideae > tribe Orchideae > subtribe Orchidinae > Platanthera |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Orchis huronensis, Habenaria hyperborea var. huronensis, Habenaria ×media, Limnorchis media, P. hyperborea var. huronensis, P. ×media | Orchis nivea, Habenaria nivea |
Name authority | (Nuttall) Lindley: Gen. Sp. Orchid. Pl., 288. (1835) | (Nuttall) Luer: Native Orchids Florida, 146. (1972) |
Web links |