''Orchis provincialis'', the Provence 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 ...

in the genus '' Orchis''.

Description

''Orchis provincialis'' is a

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

plant high. The 4-5 basal leaves are oblong-lanceolate, with a length of about 8 cm and arranged in a rosette, the color is green with purplish brown spots. The cauline leaves are sheathing the stem, with yellowish lanceolate bracts. The inflorescence comprises 5 to 30 small flowers. Their color varies from creamy white or pale yellow to various shades of pink and purple in some varieties. The lateral

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 coined b ...

s are ovate and erect, the median sepal is slightly leaning forward. The labellum is trilobed, with small spots from orange to purple on the median lobe. The white spur is cylindrical and curved upward, longer than the ovary. The gynostegium is short, obtuse, with pale yellow pollen. This orchid blooms from March to June.

Distribution

The species has a

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

distribution and it is widespread from north-western

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, south-central and southern

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 ...

to the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

. It is

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to: Albania, Bulgaria, Corse, East Aegean Is., France, Greece, Italy, Kriti, Krym, North Caucasus, Portugal, Sardegna, Sicilia, Spain, Switzerland, Transcaucasus, Turkey and Yugoslavia.

Habitat

''Orchis provincialis'' prefers slightly acidic soils of grassland, scrub and woodland, at an altitude of above sea level.

Taxonomy

It was first described by

Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, chevalier de Lamarck (1 August 1744 – 18 December 1829), often known simply as Lamarck (; ), was a French naturalist, biologist, academic, and soldier. He was an early proponent of the idea that biolog ...

Augustin Pyrame de Candolle Augustin Pyramus (or Pyrame) de Candolle (, , ; 4 February 17789 September 1841) was a Swiss botanist. René Louiche Desfontaines launched de Candolle's botanical career by recommending him at a herbarium. Within a couple of years de Candolle ...

and then widely published by

Giovanni Battista Balbis Giovanni Battista Balbis (17 November 1765 – 3 February 1831) was an Italian botanist and politician who worked in Italy and France. He alternately was called Gioanni Battista Balbis and Jean-Baptiste Balbis. In 1804, botanist Antonio José C ...

in Syn. Pl. Fl. Gall. on page 169 in 1806.

Gallery

File:Orchis provincialis (plants).jpg, Plants File:Orchidaceae - Orchis provincialis-2.JPG, Flowers File:Orchis provincialis (flower).jpg, Flower File:Orchidaceae - Orchis provincialis-3.JPG, Close-up on a flower File:Orchidaceae - Orchis provincialis-1.JPG, Close-up on a flower File:Orchidaceae - Orchis provincialis.JPG, Leaf

References

Other sources

* Pierre Delforge - Orchids of Europe, North Africa And the Middle East - 2006, Timber Press * Pignatti S. - Flora d'Italia (3 voll.) - Edagricole – 1982, Vol. III * Tutin, T.G. et al. - Flora Europaea, second edition - 1993

External links

Biolib

Orchis provincialis
provincialis Plants described in 1806 Orchids of Europe {{Orchidoideae-stub