46S 



ORCHIDE.'E 



8. O. mdscula (Enrly Purple Orchis). — Stem 6 — 12 in. high ; 

 leaves oblong-lanceolate, blunt, usually blotched with dull reddish- 

 black ; flowers few, in a loose spike, crimson, mottled with lighter 



URCHIS iVlA5Cl'l.A {Ea> h l^Urplc Orckis), 



and darker shades, rarely white, each rising from a twisted ovary, 

 and having a long, stout, blunt spur ; sepals spreading, not forming 

 a hood. — Woods and i)astures ; abundant. The colour of the 

 flovver, associated, as it often is, with Cowslips and Wild Hyacinths, 



