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Waterside Natural History Society day with Orchids

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Our original outdoor visit was cancelled to make way for a look at Orchids.

 

It is always difficult to predict when flowers are at their best, particularly this year, so when we heard that the Orchids were coming into flower we quickly rearranged our schedule to take advantage of this opportunity.

Orchids are special for many reasons.

 

They are beautiful to look at because of their colour combinations and ability to imitate insects and even animals in their structure.

 

They have adapted their three sepals to look like petals making each flower have a cap, wings and lower lip.

 

They have a unique adaptation so that insects can pollinate only other plants.

 

No wonder Charles Darwin used them to illustrate his theory of evolution.

We had to travel to different locations in the New forest in order to see a variety of Orchids and we were lucky to have as a guide Roger Grieve who not only knew where they were but holds a vast amount of information about them.

 

Sometimes we had to stop the car at the side of the road and dive in to a boggy area in order to inspect the orchids more closely.

 

Although we had our usual walk in the countryside this visit was different in that we spent more time looking closely at the different specimens and less talking about world affairs.

The first four varieties of Orchid although not at the same location all belonged to the same group which is characterised by having long bracts between the individual flowers of the dense flower spike.

 

They are further divided into two spotted orchids and two marsh orchids.

 

The ‘Heath Spotted Orchid’ has all spotted and pointed leaves running up the central stem.

 

The pale pink rounded flower heads have only a small central lobe on each flower.

 

The ‘Common Spotted Orchid’ generally has a bigger spike giving it a Christmas tree look and the lower spotted leaves are broad and elliptical.

 

The individual flowers have three almost equal lobes and the dark markings are more in the form of spots or blotches.

The third orchid was the ‘Early Marsh Orchid’ which has particularly long bracts between the flowers.

 

A distinguishing feature is that the stem is hollow which can be observed by squeezing between the thumb and forefinger.

 

The individual flower has a lower lip with sides that are bent back giving it a narrow look.

 

Dark markings are U-shaped with blotches at the centre. The spur behind the flower is straight and tapering.

 

Leaves which cling to the stem are all pointed; keeled, without spots, and rise to a hooded tip.

The fourth and last in this group was the ‘Common Marsh Orchid ‘which is sometimes divided into the northern and southern marsh orchids although only the southern is present in our area.

 

The stem is stouter than the early marsh orchid so is not so obviously hollow.

 

Flowers are usually dark rose purple and a good distinguishing feature is that the top of the stem below the flower head is also purple coloured.

 

The lower lip is broad and does not bend back. Darker green leaves are broader and fan out from the stem.

Our next Orchid looked completely different from the previous four. It was the ‘Lesser Butterfly Orchid’ which has a slim open spike of pale yellow flowers.

 

The bottom lip was in the form of a narrow tongue and at right angles to the back was a straight narrow spur.

 

The sides of the hood had pink markings with a green top.

 

The two pollinia stand vertical in the lesser butterfly orchid whereas in the greater they are curved as is the spur at the rear.

The sixth orchid was the ‘Marsh fragrant Orchid’ which even in the heat of the day had a powerful carnation like smell.

 

The deep pink flowers appear to have a pea shaped centre with delicate horizontal wings but this is largely because of their small size and the lower lip being broader than it is long.

 

The orchid has slim keeled leaves and bracts between the individual flowers but it still retains an open appearance.

We also saw one or two Bee Orchids but they were not yet in flower.

 

A ‘Broad Leaved Helleborine’ and several ‘Marsh Helleborine’ were also seen but again not in flower.

 

This brought our total for the day to nine different varieties; an impressive total for such a small area.

Although the weather had been dry for some time the marshes and bogs were still soft underfoot so we had to take care when negotiating some of the areas.

 

We came across a young grass snake which was quite active and attractive in its bright new skin.

 

Altogether we had a good day thanks to the warm sunny weather and knowledgeable guide.

 

Contact the secretary on 023 8089 3803 for membership details.

 

 

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