2o6 NATIVE BRITISH ORCHIDACE^ 



broad lowest leaf). Lip broad, only shallowly lobed, side-lobes broad niid-lobe 

 small, tooth-like, usually shorter, spur slender. Plant of marshes, peat bogs and 

 damp pastures, on acid soils. 



(3) Var trilobataBrebisson.^ Medium height (20-35 cm.), leaves narrow, lanceo- 

 late or oblong, with or without short rounded lowest leaf. Spike short, ovoid or 

 cylindrical, slender, with smaller flowers, lip with three deep nearly equal lobes, 

 sometimes the mid-lobe longer; spur cylindrical, only slightly enlarged at base 

 somewhat (rarely considerably) shorter than ovary. Plant of open chalk downs and 

 dry calcareous hillsides. 



(4) Var O'Kellyi {Orchis C'Rel/jiBt.). A form with lanceolate unspotted leaves, 

 oblong obtuse spike and small almond-scented pure white flowers. Lip not very 

 deeply 3-lobed, lobes sub-equal, or the mid-lobe slightly longer. Chalk downs 

 and limestone hills. Perhaps an albino form of (3), as it occurs singly amongst 

 hundreds of the latter in some stations,^ but in Co. Clare, Antrim, Tyrone, etc it 

 is locally common in colonies. ' Inclinadamph, W. Sutherland, York, Durham, Wm- 

 chester, Beds., Bucks., Oxford, etc. 



PI 50 The enlarged flowers, Nos. 1-20, of Orchis maculata L. were aU trom 

 districts where elodes was entirely absent. Nos. i, 2, 6, 10, 12 and 16 would perhaps 

 be identified as elodes by some botanists, but were isolated variants of what is some- 

 times Imown as 0. Yuchsii Dr. Nos. 5, 6, 13 and 14 were from alpme stations where 

 0. latihlia was abundant, and probably owe their striking colour to a stram oi that 

 species. No. 19 is 0. latijolia x 0. maculata. Nos. 21-25 a are chalk-down forms from 

 Winchester. No. 24 is remarkable for the shortness of the spur. 



Habitat. Woods, copses, pastures, field-borders, banks and marshes, but usually 

 not in very wet ground. Colonies have been seen in Sphagnum {J.B. p. 124 (1921)), 

 but this is unusual. I have several times observed in Surrey and Hants, that it is 

 almost absent from marshes where 0. i,!carmla and 0. laiifolia abounded, but frequent 

 on adjoining drier ground. Prefers basic clayey soils and is usually a lowland plant. 

 Recorded as ascending to 2800 ft. in Co. Kerry, Ireland {Cjb. Hibern. p. 345), but 

 this includes elodes, which ScuUy says (F/. Co. Kerrj, p. 279) is as common as the type. 

 In Arran confined to the lower levels, though elodes extends to higliland bogs. At 

 Kerry Montgomery, N. Wales, both types occur on a rich loamy clay, with no peat. 



Distribution. Throughout Great Britain and Ireland; our commonest orchid. 



Sub-sp. elodes. Extends northwards from the southern counties, where it occurs 

 chiefly on heaths, moors and peat bogs, to Wales, Northern England and Scotland, 



I Brebisson's description was "var. b. epi grele, fleurs petites, labeUe a 5 lobes profonds presque 



"^""""v^r tnkbafa Breb. has a slender spike of small flowers the Up divisions nearly equal and 

 is very close to O'Kel/ji, but it has spotted leaves and tinted flowers" (Dr Druce in B.E.C. p. 167 



(1917))- 



