''Neotinea lactea'', the milky orchid, 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 flowering ...

found in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

and in two North African countries:

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

and

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

. Its flowers are pale to light pink, reflecting its Latin root ''lacteus'' (milky). The species were first described in 1798 by Poiret from Algeria.

Description

''Neotinea lactea'' is a robust

polycarpic Polycarpic plants are those that flower and set seeds many times before dying. A term of identical meaning is pleonanthic and iteroparous. Polycarpic plants are able to reproduce multiple times due to at least some portion of its meristems being ab ...

geophyte A storage organ is a part of a plant specifically modified for storage of energy (generally in the form of carbohydrates) or water. Storage organs often grow underground, where they are better protected from attack by herbivores. Plants that have ...

of 10 to 25 cm high when flowering. The flower stem has a round cross-section with a rosette of 4 to 6 leaves at the base and is slightly ribbed at the top, with several smaller leaves sheathing the stem higher up. The many small flowers form a dense cluster of up to 7 cm long and oval or cylindrical in shape.

Habitat

''Neotinea lactea'' prefers a dry calcareous soil with full sun to semi-shaded light. Plants can be found up to 1800 m elevation on

calcareous grassland Calcareous grassland (or alkaline grassland) is an ecosystem associated with thin basic soil, such as that on chalk and limestone downland. Plants on calcareous grassland are typically short and hardy, and include grasses and herbs such as clover ...

s, abandoned

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

orchards, exposed locations in a

garrigue Garrigue or garigue ( ), also known as phrygana ( el, φρύγανα , n. pl.), is a type of low scrubland ecoregion and plant community in the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome. It is found on limestone soils in southern Fra ...

and open forests.

References

* , 1998.: ''Les Orchidées de France, Belgique et Luxembourg'', Collection Parthenope, ISBN 2-9510379-1-0 * , 1994.:''Guide des orchidées d'Europe, d'Afrique du Nord et du Proche-Orient'', Delachaux et Niestlé, ISBN 2-603-01323-8

External links

* Orchideae Orchids of Europe {{Orchidoideae-stub