Western Isles Wildflowers : Orchids

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Western Isles Wildflowers

Western Isles wildflowers is a collection of information about our Hebridean wildflowers including identification hints, traditional herbal uses and general plant lore.

Pale Coloured Orchids

The Spotted Orchids

We do not get the Spotted Orchid, we have our own sub-species of it called the Hebridean Spotted-orchid (along with it's crosses). Mostly this grows on the machair.

We do not get the Common Spotted Orchid either, we have a sub-species of that called the Heath Spotted-orchid (along with it's crosses). Mostly that one grows on the moor.

The spotted orchids tend to be a lot paler than the Marsh orchids.

When two different species grow alongside each other they often hybridise.

The following notes are an evolving work in progress
Version 1.03 revised 25.06.07

Orchid ID Notes

Pale coloured orchids

Intense coloured orchids

White or green orchids

Sources of notes

	Pale Colour Orchids of the Western Isles - The Spotted-orchids
	Hebridean Spotted Ochid Large picture Hebridean Spotted-orchid	Heath Spotted-orchid Large picture Heath Spotted-orchid
	Dactylorhiza fuchii subsp. hebridensis	Dactylorhiza maculata subsp ericetorum
Pale Colour Orchids (Pinkish)	Pale pink, lilac, sometimes white or dark reddish-purple tinged Flowerhead dense, pyramidal-shaped or oblong Often in groups	Pale pink, lilac, white almost mauve sometimes Flowerhead dense, pyramidal-shaped or oblong 5-20 florets Often in groups Slightly scented
Usual height in Western Isles	10cm to 25cm tall	10cm to 25cm tall
	Only on dunes, machair and damp meadows (usually near the sea)	Generally found on acid peat moorland, damp pastures (sometimes on machair) - does not like it's feet wet Found up to 900m

	Bottom part of the flower deeply 3-lobed with angular shaped lobes and with the central lobe considerably longer than the other two	Bottom part of the flower broad Shallowly 3-lobed with a short triangular central indentation, called the "tooth" (sometimes extending outward a little) wavy-edged (frilly not toothed!) Markings purple or red dots and lines (not circles)
	Spotted-orchids - top part of florets - the sepals and petals form a little hood
Leaves and stem	7 -12 leaves spreading to downcurved Rounded to elliptical, spaced along the stem Dark-spotted Upper leaves smaller, almost not a proper leaf Lower leaf	Stem slightly ridged 5 -12 Erect leaves narrow and pointed, spaced along the stem lightly marked with spots, circles Sometimes no spots Lower leaf
Modified leaves behind the floral envelopes		Narrow and pointed Lower shorter than and the upper ones longer than the flowers
Spur on the back of the florets
	Pointing downward - about three-quarters the length of the ovary (ovary attaches floret to plant)
	All the Spotted-orchid family - Straight, slim, parallel sided
Crosses	Heath spotted-orchid x Hebridean spotted-orchid (Frequently) D. x transiens x Northern Marsh-orchid (Rarely) D. x venusta x Early Marsh-orchid (Rarely) D. x kerniorum	Heath spotted-orchid x Hebridean spotted-orchid (Frequently) D. x transiens Heath Spotted x Northern Marsh-orchid (Frequently) D. x formosa x Broad-leaved Marsh-orchid (Very rare) D. x dingelensis