564 



ORCHIDACEAE. 



Vol. I. 



About 55 species, widely distributed in tropical and temperate regions. Besides the following 

 about 5 others occur in the southern States, and one in California. The flowers are often fragrant.' 

 Type species: Ophrys spiralis J. E. Smith. 



*Flowers 3-several-ranked ; rachis not conspicuously twisted. 

 Sepals and petals coherent and connivent into a hood. 1. I. strictum. 



Lateral sepals free and separate. 



Lip of quadrate type ; callosities imperfect, mostly in edge of lip-base ; vernal-flowering. 



2. /. plantagineum. 

 Lip of ovate type ; callosities prominent, mostly curved ; autumnal-flowering. 



Petals linear, not dilated at the base ; spike stout, over 7" thick. 3. /. cernuum. 



Petals lanceolate, dilated at the base ; spike slender, less than 7" thick. 4. /. ovale. 

 **Flowers merely alternate, appearing secund from the spiral twisting of the rachis. 

 Stem leafy below ; leaves narrow, elongate, persistent. 



Lip pubescent without, of an ovate type, the base dilated. 5. /. vernale. 



Lip glabrous without, of an oblong type, the base not dilated. 6. /. praecox. 



Stem merely scaly ; leaves basal, broad, short, fugacious. 



Root solitary ; lip white, of an ovate type, erose-crisped from apex to the middle. 7. /. Beckii. 

 Roots clustered ; lip green, except the crisped margin, of an oblong type, the apex wavy-crisped. 



8. /. gracile. 



i. Ibidium strictum (Rydb.) House. Hooded Ladies'-tresses. Fig. 1389. 



Gyrostachys stricta Rydb. Mem. N. Y. Bot. Gard. 1 : 107. 



1900. 

 I. strictum House, Bull. Torr. Club 32: 381. 1905. 



Stem 6'-i5' high, glabrous, leafy below, bracted above, 

 the inflorescence rarely puberulent. Lower leaves 3'-8' 

 long, linear or linear-oblanceolate ; spike 2'-^' long, 

 4"-7" thick; flowers in 3 rows, white or greenish, 

 ringent, 4"-$" long, spreading horizontally, very fra- 

 grant; sepals and petals broad at the base, all more or 

 less connivent into a hood; lip oblong or ovate-oblong, 

 broad at the base, contracted below the dilated crisped 

 apex, thin, transparent, veined; callosities mere thick- 

 enings of the basal margins of the lip, or none. 



In bogs, Newfoundland to Alaska, south to Maine, Penn- 

 sylvania, Minnesota and California. July-Aug. Confused 

 in our first edition with the Alaskan plant described as 

 Spiranthes Romanzoffiana Cham, which has narrower, long- 

 acuminate sepals and petals and an ovate, pointed end to 

 the lip. 



2. Ibidium plantagineum (Raf.) House. Wide-leaved Ladies'-tresses. 



Fig. 1390. 



Neottia plantaginea Raf. Am. Month. Mag. 2: 206. 1818. 

 N. lucida H. H. Eaton, Trans. Journ. Med. 5 : 107. 1832. 

 Spiranthes plantaginea Torr. Fl. N. Y. 2 : 284. 1843. 

 Spiranthes lucida Ames, Orch. 2 : 258. 1908. 

 I. plantagineum House, Bull. Torr. Club 32 : 381. 1905. 



Stem 4'-io' high, glabrous or pubescent, bracted above, 

 bearing 4 or 5 lanceolate or oblanceolate leaves below. 

 Leaves 1-5' long; spike 1-2' long, 4"-s" thick, dense; 

 floral bracts mostly much shorter than the flowers ; flowers 

 spreading, about 3" long; petals and sepals white, lateral 

 sepals free, narrowly lanceolate, the upper somewhat united 

 with the petals; lip pale yellow on the face, oblong, not 

 contracted in the middle, the wavy apex rounded, crisped 

 or fringed, the base short-clawed ; callosities none, or mere 

 thickenings of the lip margins. 



Moist banks and woods, Nova Scotia to Minnesota, south to 

 Virginia and Wisconsin. June-Aug. 



