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Platanthera dilatata - (image 1 of 5)

Taxonomy

Family: Orchidaceae

Habitat

Bogs, fens, marshes.

Associates

Distribution

Iceland and Greenland to AK and northeast Asia, south to NY, PA, OH, IA, NM, and CA.

Morphology

Herbaceous perennial to 1 m; lowest leaf bladeless; main foliage leaves lanceolate or lance-linear, to 20 cm long and 4 cm wide, the upper smaller and passing into the bracts; spike 10-30 cm, dense or open; bracts narrowly lanceolate, the lowest 1.5-4 cm; flowers erect or appressed, white; lip 6-8 mm, blunt, lance-ovate, widened at the base; lateral petals lance-ovate, falcate, directed forward and incurved under the upper sepals; spur slender, as long as the lip.

Notes

Flowers June to August

Wetland indicator: FACW

The specific epithet refers to the dilated base of the lip petal. Our plants are var. dilatata with the spur about equal to the lip and occurring in the northeast and parts of the west; two other varieties are restricted to western North America. The flowers have a clove-like scent.

References

Gleason, Henry A. and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. Second Ed.

The New York Botanical Garden. Bronx, NY

Sheviak, C.J. 2002. Platanthera, In: Flora of North America Editorial Committee, Eds. Flora of North America North of Mexico. Volume 26. Oxford University Press, New York.

USDA, NRCS. 2002. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov).
National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

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