Question: Hi, the attached images were photographed on July 5 and not Mansfield in Vermont. I find Spiranthes to be very …
-
Question
Hi, the attached images were photographed on July 5 and not Mansfield in Vermont. I find Spiranthes to be very confusing for ID. In the first image it appears that there may be spots on the lower lip of the individual flowers, but they are not completely open. In the second image it appears that we have a good view of a basal leaf if we blow up the plant on the lower left. Also there are plenty of leaves that are not basal. As you may guess from the second photo, there were dozens of spires.
Answer
Dear Tsuga_Can, good morning. The plant you photographed is Platanthera dilatata (white northern bog-orchid). One way to identify this is not a Spiranthes is the fact it has a nectary spur (not present in the genus Spiranthes). Best wishes.
