''Piperia'' is a former genus within the orchid family Orchidaceae that has since been subsumed under ''

Platanthera The genus ''Platanthera'' belongs to the subfamily Orchidoideae of the family Orchidaceae, and comprises about 150 species of orchids. The members of this genus, known as the butterfly orchids or fringed orchids, were previously included in the ...

''. These plants are known as rein orchids. They are native to western North America, especially California and the Pacific Northwest. This former genus has the following characteristics: (a) a

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

perennial nongreen plant that grows from buried tubers; fruit capsule bearing numerous minute seeds; (c)

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...

that is sticky, and which is removed as sessile

anther The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

sacs SACS may refer to: * SACS, a finite element analysis software by Bentley Systems * SACS (gene), a human gene that encodes the protein Sacsin * The South Atlantic Cable System, a transoceanic submarine communications cable * Saint Alphonsus Cathol ...

; and (d) stigma fused with its style into a column. There were a total of ten species in the genus ''Piperia'', which is named for American

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

Charles V. Piper. The genus members manifest generally cylindrical spikes or

raceme A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

s. The subsurface architecture of these terrestrial wild orchids consists of a

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

structure, from which emanate tubers. The rhizome extracts nutrients from fungal intermediates and may also store some of these nutrients. A basal rosette of leaves develops from the tuber at the surface of the soil, each of the two or three leaves being lanceolate in shape.Morgan & Ackerman, Lindleyana 5:205–211 (1990) Each leaf ranges from 10 to 15 centimeters in length and 20 to 35 millimeters in width. Leaves of younger plants are often more diminutive in size. Below are the ten former species of ''Piperia'' and their currently accepted names: * ''Piperia candida'' - ''

Platanthera ephemerantha ''Platanthera ephemerantha'' is a species of orchid known by the common names whiteflower rein orchid, slender white piperia, and white-flowered piperia. It is native to western North America from Alaska to the San Francisco Bay Area, where it gr ...

'' * ''Piperia colemanii -

Platanthera colemanii ''Platanthera colemanii'' is a rare species of orchid known by the common names Coleman's piperia and Coleman's rein orchid. It is endemic to California, where it is known from scattered occurrences along the Sierra Nevada and one disjunct locat ...

'' * ''Piperia cooperi -

Platanthera cooperi ''Platanthera cooperi'' is an uncommon species of orchid known by the common names Cooper's rein orchid and chaparral rein orchid. Distribution The orchid is endemic to chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and oak woodland habitats. It is native to so ...

'' * ''Piperia elegans -

Platanthera elegans ''Platanthera elegans'' is a species of orchid known by several common names, including elegant piperia, coast piperia, hillside rein orchid, and hillside bogorchid. This is a showy flowering plant native to western North America. It grows from ...

'' * ''Piperia elongata -

Platanthera elongata ''Platanthera elongata'' is a species of orchid known by the common names denseflower rein orchid, chaparral orchid and wood rein-orchid. It is native to western North America from British Columbia and Montana to southern California, where it gro ...

'' * ''Piperia leptopetala -

Platanthera leptopetala ''Platanthera leptopetala'' is a species of orchid known by the common names narrow-petal rein orchid, and lacy rein orchid. It is native to the west coast of the United States from Washington to California, where it grows in scrub and woodland h ...

'' * ''Piperia michaelii -

Platanthera michaelii ''Platanthera michaelii'' is an uncommon species of orchid known by the common names Michael's rein orchid and Michael's piperia. It is endemic to California, where it is known from the coastal plains, hills, and mountains, and the Sierra Nevada ...

'' * ''Piperia transversa -

Platanthera transversa ''Platanthera transversa'' is a species of orchid known by the common names royal rein orchid and flat spurred piperia. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California, where it can be found in forest, woodland, chaparr ...

'' * ''Piperia unalascensis -

Platanthera unalascensis ''Platanthera unalascensis'' is a species of orchid known by the common names slender-spire orchid, Alaska piperia and Alaska rein orchid. It is native to much of western North America from Alaska to the southwestern United States, as well as eas ...

'' * ''Piperia yadonii -

Platanthera yadonii ''Platanthera yadonii'', also known as Yadon's piperia or Yadon's rein orchid, is an endangered orchid endemic to a narrow range of coastal habitat in northern Monterey County, California. In 1998 this plant was designated as an endangered spe ...

References

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3308338 Historically recognized angiosperm genera Orchid genera