LiMXORCHIS AND PlPERlA NORTH OF MEXICO 



615 



Tall and strict 3-10 dm. high: tubers fusiform, .5-1 cm. in 

 diameter: lower leaves oblanceolate, obtuse, 5-12 cm. long, 15-25 

 mm. wide : the upper lanceolate, acute : 

 spike usually very long, 1-3 dm., and 

 lax : bracts linear-lanceolate, the lower 

 much longer than the flowers, often 3-4 

 cm. long: flowers 12-14 mm. lons" • 



sepals green, rather thin ; the upper 



ovate, erect, 4-5 mm. long ; the lateral 



ones lanceolate, obtuse, 5-6 mm. long : 



petals purplish, lanceolate, acute ; lip Fig. i. 



linear, obtuse, 5-7 mm. long, thick, 



purple ; spur one-half to two-thirds as long as the lip, purplish, 



very saccate, /. c, thickened and round at the apex. (Fig. i.) 



The structure of the flowers places this species in the L. hypcr- 

 Iwrca gxow^, although the lip is linear, scarcely at all broadened at 

 the base. This character and the lax spike would place it near 

 L. laxiflora, but that is distinguished by the long spur and broad 

 connective. L. stricta is common in damp places, swamps, 

 etc., from Alaska to Washington, Wyoming and Montana. It 

 has also been collected in Colorado at Twin Lakes, 1873, /<r^//// 

 Wolf, p6j, and Manitou, 1896, Fra/. Clements. 



Type : " America boreali-occidcntalis , Douglas^ 



2. LiMNORCHis PURPURASCENS Rydb. Bull. Torr. Club, 28 : 269. 



1 90 1 



A rather stout plant, 3-5 dm. high : tubers elongated, fusiform : 

 leaves ovate to lanceolate, acute, 6-ib cm. long, 15-30 cm. wide, 



dark green : spike dense ; bracts lanceolate, 

 the lower exceeding the flowers : these 10-12 

 mm. long : lateral sepals oblong, linear to 

 lanceolate, obtuse, 4-5 mm. long ; the upper 

 broadly ovate, erect, obtuse, tinged with 

 purple : petals slightly shorter, erect, pur- 

 ple, lanceolate ; lip broadly linear-lanceo- 

 late, obtuse, about 5 mm. long, purplish, 

 thick, slightly dilated at the base ; spur 

 one-half to two-thirds as long as the lip. slightly curved and 

 strongly saccate : ovary strongly curved. (Fig. 2.) 



This species resembles the preceding in the short spur and 

 purplish flowers, but the habit and form of the lip are more like 

 that of L. liyperborea. L. purpurascens is a rare plant, growing on 



Fic. 



