O r c h i s F us c a . G r e a t O r c h i s .
ORCHIS. Linn. Gen. PL G ynand'ria Diandria.
Nectarium- cornu referens pone florem. Cor. ringens.
Raii Syn. Gen. 26. Herbal bulbo.sis affines.
ORlCHIS fufca bulbis indivifis, ne&arii labio quadrifido: laciniis oblongis, cornu brevi, petalis
confluentibus. • Linn. Syfi. Vegetab. ed. 14. Murr. p. Sog. J.acq. Fi. Außr, v. 4. p. 4.
t. ßo7. -
ORCHIS militaris Linn.JSp. Fl. ed. 3. p. 1334. var.ß.
ORCHIS radicibus fubrotundis; fpica longa; labello quadrifido, brachiolis angufiis, crufculis latis
ferratis. Hall. Hiß. Helv. n.. 1276. t. 31.
ORCHIS magna, latis foliis, galea fufca feu nigricante. J . B. IL p. 759. Raii Syn. ed. 3. p. 378.
1 . 19. / 2 . ,
ORCHIS militaris major. Town. Infi. R. Herb. 432. Vaill. par. /. 31. f 27, 28.
RADIX: Bulbi duo, oblongi, magni. §
FOLIA caulina inferiora ovato-oblonga, obtufiufcula, §
a duabus ad tres uncias lata, glabra, lineata, §
in quibufdam fpeciminibus tranfverfe rugofa, $
læte virentia, fuperiora anguftiora, caulem ?
«bvolventia: X
CAULIS pedalis, ad bipedalem, et ultra, ereftus, teres, (f
lævis, inferne viridis, fuperne purpureus. . Ô
FLORES numerofi, in fpica longa, ovato-cylindracea, f
imbricatim denfe collocati. 9
BRAGTEÆ perbreves, vix longitudine calcaris nee- X
tarii, ovato-acuminatæ. À
COROLLA: Pet ala 5 in galeam conniventia, tria Ô
exteriora ovata, acuta, obfolete 3-nervia, f
■ concavà, punftis èxfufco-purpureis confluen- 9
tibus notata, duo interiorà multo anguftiora, X
oblonga, verfus apicem paululum dilatata, X
pallidiora, punftis purpureis etiam notata, |
NECTARIUM : Calcar obtufum, fubcompreffum, ob- f
- folete bifidum, medium germinis vix attin- X
gens, albefcens: Labeilum amplum, latum, X
pun£ris purpureis prominulis exafperatum, <C
quæ uti Hallerus refte monet brevium pilo- ©
rum fafciculi funt, in floribus nuper apertis .1
faturatius purpureum, præfertim ad oras, f
quadrifidum, laciniæ fuperiores fublineares, i
divergentes, inferiores triplo latiores, diver- X
gentes, apicibus ' fubtruncatis, erofo-denticu- X
latis,. mucrone plerumque intermedio. . 6
I STAMINA: Theca ftaminum purpureae, ßg. 2. Fila- 9
men t a flavefcentia, A ntheræ fùbclavatæ, 1
albidæ, fig, 3; ‘ . X
GERMEN teretiufculum, tortuofum, glabrum, ex |
fufco viridiqüe varium. |
ROOT two, oblong, large Bulbs.
LEAVES : thofe on the lower part o f the ftalk ovato-
oblong, a little blunt, • from two to three
inches broad, glofly, feored, in fome fpeci-
mens tranverfely wrinkled, of a lively green
colour, the uppermoft leaves narrower and
furrounding the ftalk.
STALK a foot, two feet, and fometimes more in
height, upright, round, fmooth, green below,
purple above.
FLOWERS numerous, placed clofe together, one
over the other, Jn a long fpike, betwixt
ovate and cylindrical.
BRACTEriE very lhort, fcarcely the length o f the
fpur o f the neflary, ovato-acuminate.
COROLLA: 5 Petals doling and forming a helmet,
the three outermoft ovate, pointed,
faintly three ribb’d, concave, marked with
fpots of a brownilh purple colour running
together, the two innermoft ones much nar-
roweft, oblong, a little dilated towards the
top, paler, marked alfo .with purple fpots,
f e ' * •
N E C TAR Y : the Spur blunt, fomewhat flattened,
flightly bifid, fcarcely reaching to the middle
of the germen : Labellum large, broad, rough,
with prominent purple dots, which, as Haller
juftly obferves, are little tufts of lhort hairs,
in flowers lately'opened o f a deeper purple
colour, especially on the edges, divided into
four fegments, the two uppermoft of which
are nearly linear and diverging, the two
lowermoft. thrice as broad, diverging, the
tips fomewhat truncated, irregularly and
finely notched, with a lhort point for the
moft part between the two.
STAMINA: Cafes of the ftamina purple, fig. 2.
Filaments yellowilh, A n th er s fomewhat
club-lhaped, whitilh, fig. 3j
GERMEN roundilh, twilled, fmooth, variegated with
green and brown.
On chalky banks abounding with Milkwort and Juniper, near woods, and in the woods themfelves, in many
parts of Kent, efpeciallv about Rochefter, we have had no fmall pleafure in obferving this plant grow in great
abundance. ' . 6 6
In expofed afpefts its ufual height is about nine inches, in woods and copfes where it is more fheltered and
where the foil is richer, it will acquire the height of two feet or more ; fuch fpecimens in beauty and grandeur
tar (urpafs every Bxitifti Orchis; its flowers vary exceedingly in colour, fome being of a light, others of a deep
purple colour, ndw and then one wholly white occurs; the lip of the ne&ary, an interefting objeft for the
raicrofcope, varies alfo in breadth; both root and flowers fend forth a ftrong fmell, fomewhat like but not fo
pleafant as Anthoxanthum.
K flowers early in May, and in forward feafons at The clofe o f April, at the fame time as the early fpotted
Urchis, Cowllip, and Harebell. 1 *
Our plant is undoubtedly the Orchis fufca of Ja cquin, whofe name we have adopted, as alfo the one we
ave referred to in Haller, by whom it is reprefented in.a very luxuriant ftate; L innaus regards it as
j Vanety ° f his militaris;. Prof. Murray, in the 14th ed. of his Syfi. Vegetab. follows R a y , Haller
JacqxjiNj V aillant,’ and others,, in making it a fpecies. ’ *
The fame culture which we have recommended for the Ophrys fucifcra is applicable to this fpecies.