Orchis purpureaHuds. subsp. purpurea - Lady orchid
Scientific Description:
Stout plant, 40–80 cm, with 4–6 ovate-oblong leaves near base, to 16 × 6 cm. Spike ± dense and many-flowered, flowers large. Sepals forming a globose hood, uniformly coloured or with conspicuous dense dark reddish-brown spots outside. Labellum flat, to 20 mm, 3-lobed, whitish or pale rose, densely spotted with tufts of reddish-purple papillae; lateral lobes linear; middle lobe obcordate or obovate-cuneate, slightly bilobed; lobules broadly rhombic, rounded or truncate, irregularly crenulate, mostly with a tooth in between. Spur cylindrical, curved forwards, nearly half as long as ovary.
Flowering time: April–May.
Habitat: Glades and edges of deciduous forests, scrub, on calcareous soils, 100–1750 m.
Reference:
Renz J & Taubenheim G (1984). Orchis purpurea Hudson, In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 8: 521.
Public Description:
Orchis purpurea, commonly known as “lady orchid”, is native to Europe, Türkiye, Caucasus and Northern Africa. It is a herbaceous perennial plant with pink-white flowers and can be grow up to 80 cm long. In Türkiye, the tubers of this plant under soil are collected to make a kind of Turkish drink "salep" and ice cream. Lady orchid grows in sloping woodlands, particularly in mixed deciduous/oak forests, but occasionally occur in meadows, and prefers limestone or chalk soil. It blooms from April until well into June.
References:
Anonymous (2017). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orchis_purpurea, Accessed date: 09.05.2017.
Güler N (2012). Orchis 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.