keys to the vascular plants of east texas - Botanical Research ...

PLATANTHERA/ORCHIDACEAE
773
Platanthera ciliaris (L.) Lindl., (ciliate, fringed), YELLOW FRINGED ORCHID, YELLOW FINGER OR-
CHID, ORANGE-FRINGE, ORANGE-PLUME, RATTLESNAKE’S-MASTER. Plant 24–100 cm tall; leaves 2–4,
oblong lanceolate to lanceolate, 7–30(–40) cm long, 0.6–6 cm wide; spikes densely- or looselyflowered,
with 30–60 flowers; flowers very showy, bright to deep orange; sepals oblong-elliptic
to ovate or nearly orbicular, 4–9 mm long; petals linear, 6–7 mm long; lip oblong, 8–12 mm long
(not including fringe), conspicuously fringed marginally, the fringe adding ca. another cm or
more in length (the fringe segments can themselves be branched); spur slender, 20–35 mm
long, longer than the ovary. Low woods, near edge of water, moist areas, hillside seepage bogs,
baygalls, and savannahs, acidic soils; mainly in the Pineywoods, but w to w margin of Post Oak
Savannah in Henderson, Milam (Correll 1961), and Anderson (MacRoberts & MacRoberts
1998e) cos.; se Canada (Ont.) and e U.S. from NY s to FL w to IL, OK, and TX. Jun–Aug.
[Blephariglottis ciliaris (L.) Rydb., Habenaria ciliaris (L.) R. Br. ex W.T. Aiton] Pollination is by
long-tongued butterflies which get the pollinia attached to their compound eyes (Folsom
1984). Smith and Snow (1976) found that Papilio troilus (spicebush swallowtail) was the main
pollinator. This is the most common summer-blooming orchid in East TX (Liggio & Liggio
1999). Hybrids are known between P. ciliaris and both P. blephariglottis and P. cristata (Sheviak
2002b); Brown (2002b) treated the hybrid between P. ciliaris and P. conspicua (P. blephariglottis
var. conspicua) as P. �lueri P.M. Br. m/294
Platanthera clavellata (Michx.) Luer, (club-shaped, in reference to the spurs), LITTLE CLUB-SPUR
ORCHID, SMALL WOOD ORCHID, GREEN WOODLAND ORCHID, GREEN WOOD ORCHID, SMALL GREEN
WOOD ORCHID, FROG-SPIKE, GREEN REIN ORCHID, SOUTHERN REIN ORCHID, WOOD ORCHID. Plant 15–
35(–47) cm tall; leaves 1(–2), oblanceolate to obovate-oblanceolate, 5–19 cm long, 1–3.5 cm wide;
spikes usually with 3–15 flowers; flowers yellow-green to pale green, twisted ca. 45 degrees
away from the vertical axis of the stem; sepals ovate, 4–5 mm long; petals ovate or obovate, 3–5
mm long; lip oblong, obscurely 3-lobed apically, 3–7 mm long; spur varying from slightly clubshaped
to slender and cylindric, 8–13 mm long, longer than the ovary. At edge of water or in
water, along streams, swamps, baygalls, and seeps, mucky saturated soils; widespread in the
Pineywoods; e Canada and throughout e U.S. w to MN, OK, and TX. Jun–Jul. [Gymnadeniopsis
clavellata (Michx.) Rydb., Habenaria clavellata (Michx.) Rydb.] In bud this species superficially
resembles the adder’s-tongue ferns—Ophioglossum. It is reportedly self-pollinated throughout
much of its range (Catling & Catling 1991b). As in P. integra and P. nivea, the column of this
species bears appendages (somewhat as in Habenaria); because of this, Sheviak (2002b) noted
that it “appears that this species is inappropriately placed in Platanthera.” However, hybrids are
known between P. clavellata and P. blephariglottis (Sheviak 2002b). m/294
Platanthera cristata (Michx.) Lindl., (crested), CRESTED FRINGED ORCHID, CRESTED FINGER ORCHID,
ORANGE-CREST ORCHID, GOLDEN FRINGE ORCHID, ORANGE-CREST, CRESTED YELLOW ORCHID, YEL-
LOW FRINGED ORCHID. Plant 18–90 cm tall; leaves 2–4, oblong-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 5–
21 cm long; spikes usually densely-flowered, with up to ca. 80 flowers; flowers bright orange
(resembling small versions of those of P. ciliaris); sepals oblong-elliptic to orbicular, 3–4.5 mm
long; petals oblong-elliptic to obovate, 2–4 mm long; lip ovate, ca. 4–6 mm long (not including
fringe), conspicuously fringed marginally, the fringe adding ca. 4 mm in length (the fringe segments
can themselves be branched); spur slender, 4–8(–10) mm long, much shorter than the
ovary. Bogs, baygalls, seeps, low meadows, and damp woods, moist, sandy, intensely acidic soils;
Pineywoods, particularly the s portion; e U.S. from NY s to FL w to AR and TX. Jun–Jul.
[Blephariglottis cristata (Michx.) Raf., Habenaria cristata (Michx.) R. Br. ex W.T. Aiton] This species
is similar to P. ciliaris but “has a narrower, more compact and often proportionately longer
raceme [spike] of flowers which are less than half the size of those of P. ciliaris” (Luer 1975). The
species is also similar to P. chapmanii, but the triangular or keyhole-shaped mouth of the spur of
P. cristata is distinctive and can be used to distinguish the species from P. chapmanii (mouth of spur