''Epipactis gigantea'' is a species of

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowerin ...

known as the stream orchid, giant helleborine, and chatterbox. This wildflower is native to western North America from

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

to central

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> This is one of the most abundant orchids of the Pacific coast of North America.Flora of North America, v 26 p 585, ''Epipactis gigantea''
/ref>

Description

''Epipactis gigantea'' is an erect perennial reaching anywhere from 30 centimeters to one meter in height. Its stems have prominently-veined, wide or narrow lance-shaped leaves 5 to 15 centimeters long and

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

s of two or three showy orchids near the top. Each flower has three straight

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coine ...

s which are light brownish or greenish with darker veining, each one to two centimeters long. The two top petals are similar in shape and reddish-brown with purple veins. The lowest petal is cup-shaped with a pointed, tongue-like protuberance and is brighter red-brown and more starkly veined, often with areas of yellow. The fruit is a hanging capsule 2 or 3 centimeters long which contains thousands of tiny seeds. This plant grows in wet areas in a variety of habitats, including riverbanks,

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by c ...

s, and meadows at elevations between 2800 and 8000 feet. Unlike some of its relatives, this species is an

autotroph An autotroph or primary producer is an organism that produces complex organic compounds (such as carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) using carbon from simple substances such as carbon dioxide,Morris, J. et al. (2019). "Biology: How Life Wo ...

. A distinctive race with burgundy colored foliage is known from The Cedars in Sonoma County California, an area of serpentine rock, and it is called forma rubrifolia (P M Brown).

Cultivation

''Epipactis gigantea'' is cultivated in the specialty

horticulture Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...

trade and available as a non-wild collected propagated

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

. A maroon-leaved (forma ''rubrifolia'')

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

is also grown, called 'Serpentine Night'. File:Epipactis gigantea meadow-clump.jpg, E gigantea clump in moist meadow File:Epipactis gigantea 'Serpentine'.jpg, Cultivar Serpentine Night File:Epipactis gigantea seedheads.jpg, Stream orchid seedheads File:Epipactis gigantea flower closeup.jpg, E gigantea flower closeup

References

* C.Michael Hogan, ed. 2010.
''Epipactis gigantea'' - Encyclopedia of LifeJepson Manual Treatment - ''Epipactis gigantea''

External links

Las Pilitas Nursery, ''Epipactis gigantea'', Stream Orchid and Giant helleborine''Epipactis gigantea'' - Photo galleryWashington Native Orchid Society, ''Epipactis gigantea'' or Stream OrchidColorado State University, ''Epipactis gigantea'' Dougl. ex Hook. (stream orchid): A Technical Conservation AssessmentLady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, University of Texas @ Austin, ''Epipactis gigantea'' Rare Plants United Kingdom, ''Epipactis gigantea''Dave's Garden, PlantFiles: Species Orchid, Giant Helleborine, Giant Stream Orchid, Epipactis, ''Epipactis gigantea'' E-flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2221912 gigantea Orchids of Canada Orchids of Mexico Orchids of the United States Flora of the Western United States Flora of Western Canada Flora of Northwestern Mexico Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Flora of California Flora of the California desert regions Garden plants of North America Plants described in 1839 Flora without expected TNC conservation status