Orchis mascula (Linne) Linne 1755
Photo by Pascal Pernot
Photo by © Pieter C. Brouwer and his Photo Website
Photo by © Egon Krogsgaard
O mascula Group
Common Name The Male Orchis - The Early Purple Orchid
Flower Size about 1" [to 2.5 cm]
Found in the Faroe Islands, Ireland, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Portugal, Spain, the Balearic Islands, France, Sardinia, Sicily, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Yugoslavia, Albania, eastern Aegean Islands, Greece, Turkey Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, most of Russia, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran as small to medium sized, cold growing terrestrial with ellipsoid tubers carrying an erect stem with 3 to 5, basal in a rosette, oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate, glossy, often spotted dark purple lower leaves and becoming leaf sheaths higher on the stem that blooms in the spring on a oblong in shape, 3 to 5" [7.5 to 12.5 cm] long, many [6 to 20] flowered inflorescence with 1 to 3 veined, lanceolate, purple tinted floral bracts.
Witches in Europe have been known to concoct love potions with the tubers of this species.
Synonyms Androrchis mascula (L.) D.Tyteca & E.Klein 2008; Androrchis ovalis (F.W.Schmidt) D.Tyteca & E.Klein 2008; Androrchis tenera (Landwehr) D.Tyteca & E.Klein 2008; × Orchidactyla kromayeri (M.Schulze) Borsos & Soó 1966; × Orchidactyla pentecostalis (Wettst. & Sennholz) Borsos & Soó 1966 ; × Orchidactyla speciosissima (Wettst. & Sennholz) Borsos & Soó 1966; Orchis cochleata Fleischm. & M.Schulze 1902; Orchis compressiflora Stokes 1812; Orchis glaucophylla A. Kern 1864; Orchis kromayeri M.Schulze 1904; Orchis lapalmensis (Leibbach & Ruedi Peter) P.Delforge 2007; Orchis mascula f. acutiflora (W.D.J.Koch) A.Fuchs 1915; Orchis mascula f. albiflora (Touss. & Hoschedé) F.M.Vázquez 2009; Orchis mascula f. borbasiana Soó 1927; Orchis mascula f. brevibracteata Luerss. 1868; Orchis mascula f. brevicalcarata E.G.Camus 1908; Orchis mascula f. cochleata (H.Fleischm. & M.Schulze) Asch. & Graebn. 1907; Orchis mascula f. comosa M.Schulze 1894; Orchis mascula f. fimbriata F.M.Vázquez 2009; Orchis mascula f. kotuliana Zapal. 1906; Orchis mascula f. laxa Zapal. 1906; Orchis mascula f. longicalcarata (Akhalk., H.Baumann, R.Lorenz, Mosul. & Ruedi Peter) P.Delforge 2007; Orchis mascula f. longifolia Landwehr 1977; Orchis mascula f. maghrebiana (B.Baumann & H.Baumann) P.Delforge 2007; Orchis mascula f. minor Zapal. 1906; Orchis mascula f. platyloba W.Zimm. 1910; Orchis mascula f. podolica Zapal. 1906; Orchis mascula f. reichenbachiana Soó 1927; Orchis mascula f. tatrensis Zapal. 1906; Orchis mascula lusus alba (Goiran) Soó 1928; Orchis mascula lusus rosea (Goiran) Soó 1928; Orchis mascula subsp. acutiflora (W.D.J.Koch) Quentin 1993;Orchis mascula subsp. lapalmensis Leibbach & Ruedi Peter 2007; Orchis mascula subsp. longibracteatoides Balayer 1986; Orchis mascula subsp. longicalcarata Akhalk., H.Baumann, R.Lorenz, Mosul. & Ruedi Peter 2005; Orchis mascula subsp. maghrebiana B.Baumann & H.Baumann 2005; Orchis mascula subsp. occidentalis O.Schwarz 1949; Orchis mascula subsp. pinetorum (Boiss. & Kotschy) E.G.Camus 1908; Orchis mascula subsp. signifera (Vest) Soó 1927; Orchis mascula subsp. speciosa (Mutel) Hegi 1909; Orchis mascula subsp. tenera (Landwehr) Del Prete 1999; Orchis mascula subsp. wanjkovii (E.Wulff) Soó 1932 ; Orchis mascula var. acutiflora W.D.J.Koch 1837; Orchis mascula var. albiflora Tinant 1836; Orchis mascula var. albiflora Touss. & Hoschedé 1898; Orchis mascula var. bicolor Balayer 1986; Orchis mascula var. glaucophylla (Kern.) Nyman 1882; Orchis mascula var. hostii Patze, E.H.F.Mey. & Elkan 1848; Orchis mascula var. maritzii J.A.Guim. 1887; Orchis mascula var. minima Tinant 1836; Orchis mascula var. monsignatica Font Quer 1928; Orchis mascula var. obtusata Schur 1866; Orchis mascula var. obtusiflora W.D.J.Koch 1837; Orchis mascula var. ovalis (F.W.Schmidt) Rchb. 1833; Orchis mascula var. pinetorum (Boiss. & Kotschy) Schltr. 1927; Orchis mascula var. signifera (Vest) Steud. & Hochst. 1826; Orchis mascula var. speciosa Mutel 1836; Orchis mascula var. tenera Landwehr 1977; Orchis masculolatifolia Lange 1860; Orchis masculolaxiflora Lange 1860; Orchis monsignatica (Font Quer) Rivas Goday 1941; Orchis morio f. mascula Linne 1753; Orchis morio var. mascula L. 1753; Orchis obtusa Schur 1866; Orchis obtusiflora Schur 1853; Orchis olivetorum Gren. ex Nyman 1882; Orchis ovalis F.W. Schmidt 1791; Orchis parreissii C.Presl 1845; Orchis patens var. fallax (De Not.) Rchb.f. 1851; Orchis pentecostalis Wettst. & Sennhol 1889; Orchis pinetorum Boiss. & Kotschy 1882; Orchis rectiflorus St.-Lag 1883 publ. 1884; Orchis signifera Vest 1824; Orchis speciosa Host 1831; Orchis speciosa var. alba Goiran 1883; Orchis speciosa var. rosea Goiran 1883; Orchis speciosissima Wettst. & Sennholz 1889; Orchis stabiana Tenore 1833; Orchis tenera (Landwehr) Kreutz 1991; Orchis tenera f. herculiana F.M.Vázquez 2009; Orchis untchji M.Schulze 1907; Orchis verna Fleury 1819; Orchis vernalis Salisbury 1796; Orchis wanjkovii E.Wulff 1930; Orchis wilmsii K.Richt. 1890
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915; Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915 as O mascula var speciosa; Atlas des Orchidees Cultivees Constantin 1920 drawing good; AOS Bulletin Vol 28 No 5 1959; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965; AOS Bulletin Vol 36 #3 1967 photo fide; Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 4 193 to 256 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1973; AOS Bulletin Vol 47 No 6 1978; AOS Bulletin Vol 51 No 3 1982 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 55 No 1 1986 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 56 No 1 1987 drawing fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 71 No 4 2002 as O ovalis drawing fide; Orchids of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East Delforge 2005; AOS Bulletin Vol 77 No 6 2008 as O mascula subsp pineotorum photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 72 #2 2008 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 72 #2 2008 as O pinetorum photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 75 #2 2011 Photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 79 #1 2015 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 81 #1 2017 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 86 #5 2017 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 82 #2 2018 Photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol #9 2019 drawing fide; Orchid Digest Vol 84 #1 2020 photo fide;
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