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More Fall Orchids At Home & the adjacent S. Nantahala Wilderness |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2018) |
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More Fall Orchids At Home & the adjacent S. Nantahala Wilderness |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2018) |
| After finding the October Ladies' Tresses and Fall Coral-root Orchids in September, I spent some time taking a closer look for additional colonies of these hard-to-see orchids. I was pleased to find additional populations, even closer to our house! Early October 2018: |
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| When I found the Fall Coral-roots last month, I had been searching along the creek for Turtleheads. They were finally blooming. |
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| White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra) |
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| A pair of flowers |
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| I was surprised to still see some Black Trumpets (Craterellus cornucopioides) |
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| A cool looking, but unidentified, mushroom.. Amanita species??? |
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| An orange Hygrocybe species |
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| I found several more Coral-root Orchid colonies closer to home. At one location, they were in similar condition to my earlier finds. |
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| At another location, the orchids were just starting to flower. |
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| Fall Coral-root (Corallorhiza odontorhiza) |
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| Same plant, two days later Noticeable progress in bloom progression. |
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| The base of the Coral-root consists of a swollen bulb-like structure |
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| Another pair of Coral-roots |
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| Yellowroot (Xanthorhiza simplicissima), gone to seed-fruit |
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| Bedstraw (Galium aparine) |
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| October Ladies' Tresses Orchid (Spiranthes ovalis var. erostellata) Not far from our house, I found my largest colony to date of these orchids. Unfortunately they were well past their prime, with many gone to seed. |
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| A few were still in bloom... |
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| These are growing in deep shade, and would probably benefit from a thinning of the sapling understory. |