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

Platanthera huronensis (Nutt.) Lindl.Platanthera huronensis, (pla-tan‟-ther-ah)+(hur-on-en‟-sis), named after Lake Huron close to where itwas first found. Platanthera derived from the Greek words meaning ”wide anther”, in reference tothe broad anther on the flower in this orchid.This plant flowers are a very distinctive greenish white. It has been confused with Platanthera dilatataby some.Common names: Tall northern green orchid, Tall green bog-orchidFlowering: early June thru 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 greenish white in color. But not white likePlatanthera dilatata. Flowers are densely packed along the upper half of the flowering stem. Thesepals fold downwards and outwards at a 45 degree angle from the base of the spur and flower. Thepetals and dorsal sepal come together to form a type of hood over the Column. This hoodedportion along with the lower sepal and lip stand erect and parallel to the flowering stem. This orchidalso has a nectary or spur which contains the nectar that so many insects and moths are striving for.The spur is cylindrical and club like and fully rounded at the bottom. It also curves outward fromthe base of the spur and flower. The spur is about as long as the lip. The spur is greenish white.Habitat: This orchid grows from some partial shade to full complete sunshine. Mostly foundgrowing in wet swampy ground to having running water around the plant. It is an orchid that growsin road side cuts. The height of this orchid during blooming time varies between 4 to 18 inchesdepending on habitat and altitude conditions, amounts of water and elevations. It is found atelevations between 8,000 and 12,000 feet in Colorado.157