ORCHISL. - ORCHID
Scientific Description:
Erect perennials with globose to ellipsoid undivided tubers. Leaves unspotted or spotted, ± arranged near base. Emerging spike enclosed by spathe-like leaves, many-flowered, ± cylindrical. Flowers in various shades of red, purple, and yellow, rarely white. Bracts membranous. Lateral sepals spreading to reflexed or all sepals connivent with petals, forming a hood. Labellum ± directed downwards, entire or 3-lobed, with entire or ± divided middle lobe, glabrous or ± papillose above, with saccate to filiform spur. Anther finely attached to short, erect column, folded median part of rostellum placed between the parallel anther cells (loculi). Pollinia 2, clavate, narrowed below to caudicles, attached to separate viscidia, which are enclosed in a single pouch (bursicula). Ovary cylindrical, sessile, twisted, glabrous.
Reference:
Renz J & Taubenheim G (1984). Orchis L., In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 8: 516.
Public Description:
Orchis is a genus of orchids, known as “orchid”, occurring mainly in Europe, Türkiye and Northwest Africa, and ranging as far as Tibet, Mongolia, and Xinjiang. There are approximately 61 species in the world and 20 species (21 taxa) in Türkiye. The name is from the Ancient Greek orchis, meaning "testicle", from the appearance of the paired subterranean tuberoids. These terrestrial orchids have root tubers. They are extremely diverse in appearance. They produce an erect stem with yellow, white, red to purple flowers. The petals and sepals often form a helmetlike structure, and the flower lip usually is several lobed.
References:
Anonymous 1 (2016). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orchis/,Accessed date: 03.03.2016.
Anonymous 2 (2016). http://global.britannica.com/plant/Orchis/,Accessed date: 03.03.2016.
Anonymous 3 (2016). http://www.theplantlist.org/1.1/browse/A/Orchidaceae/Orchis/ /,Accessed date: 03.03.2016.
Güler N (2012). Orchis Tourn. ex L., In: Güner, A., Aslan, S., Ekim, T., Vural, M. & Babaç, M.T. (eds.), Türkiye Bitkileri Listesi (Damarlı Bitkiler). Nezahat Gökyiğit Botanik Bahçesi ve Flora Araştırmaları Derneği Yayını. İstanbul, pp. 645-650.
