Scotty Smith's Orchids of Colorado. - Southwest Colorado Wildflowers

Platanthera aquilonis SheviakPlatanthera aquilonis, (pla-tan‟-ther-ah)+(ack-wee-low‟-niss) meaning “of the north”, in reference to itsrange. Platanthera is from the Greek words meaning wide anther, referring to the broad anthers onthese flowers.Common name: Green bog orchid.Flowering: late May thru early August.Description: The floral stem blooms from the bottom first and then blossoms upwards. Theblooming time of this orchid is a month long or better. The higher the elevation the later it bloomsand the later it stays blossoming. The flower itself is a light green to a yellow green. The sepals folddownwards towards the spur. The petals and dorsal sepal come together to form a type of hoodover the column. This hooded portion along with the lower sepal and lip forms a roughly 90 degreeangle that points outwards from the flowering stem. The flowers along the stem seem to staycompact along the upper portion of the stem. This orchid also has a nectary or spur which containsthe nectar that so many insects and moths are striving for. The spur is cylindrical and club like andfully rounded at the bottom. It also curves outward from the base of the spur and flower. The spuris usually shorter than the length of the lip. The spur is yellow green.Habitat: This orchid grows from slightly partial shade to full complete sunshine. Mostly foundgrowing in wet swampy ground to having running water around the plant. The height of this orchidduring blooming time varies between 12 inches and 2 feet, varying with habitat conditions andamounts of water and elevations. Found at elevations between 5,000 and 11,000 feet in Colorado.This orchid was once known as Platanthera hyperborea. This was incorrect and everything in theUnited States that was once called P. hyperborea (without variety) is now known as P. aquilonis.155