Green Orchids
Green Orchids are Hard to Find
Of all the thousands and thousands of orchids, green orchids are still quite uncommon. In all the different families of orchids, very few have this unique color.
The Platanthera genus of orchids is one family that has a variety of green orchids. And, surprisingly enough, it doesn’t reside in a far away tropical climate. In fact, many species are found in Washington State, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska, California, Iowa, New Mexico and eastward to Rhode Island. In Canada, the orchid grows in the provinces of Newfoundland, Alberta and British Columbia. The genus is known for more than just green orchids as there are over 200 species in this one orchard family.
Let’s take a look at a few of the green orchids in the Platanthera family:
The Northern Green Bog Orchid, also known as Leafy Green Orchid or Platanthera hyperborean, is one of the green orchids that grows well in northern climates. It is a terrestrial orchid, growing wild in bogs, fens, seeps, river gravel, wet meadows and ditches beside highways. It is a June to August summer bloomer with small flowers that are only about a quarter of an inch wide. It can grow to be as tall as twenty-three inches.
Chamisso’s Orchid, or latanthera chorisiana, is another of the green orchids that grows wild in mossy turf and grass. Each plant can have anywhere from five to twenty little green flowers that are approximately 4 mm wide. It blooms in the summer from July to August. The plant can grow anywhere from two to eight inches high. Chamisso’s Orchid can be found from Washington State to Alaska and in Eurasia.
The Green Bog Orchid is also known as Platanthera huronensis, Green Bog Orchis and Huron Green Orchid. The huronensis refers to Lake Huron. This is a wild orchid that can be found in bogs, fens, seeps, river gravel, wet meadows and ditches beside highways. These green orchids are very tall with profuse flowers in open wet areas, but are shorter with fewer flowers in wooded areas. The flowers are only .8-inches wide but the plant grows from four to forty inches tall. They can have from twenty to seventy-five flowers. The Green Bog Orchid is found in Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Montana and Alaska in the United States, and Newfoundland, Alberta and British Columbia in Canada.
The Large Round-Leaved Rein Orchid is also known as Platanthera orbiculata or Habenaria orbiculata. It grows in wet woods and can be found on the Pacific Crest Trail to Mount Rainier. There can be as many as twenty greenish flowers on a plant that grows to be two-feet tall. The size of the flowers range from three-fourths to one-and-a-half inches. In addition to Washington State, the Large Round-Leaved Rein Orchid can be found in the Great Lakes Region, British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador.