Platanthera praeclara Sheviak & M.L.Bowles 1986
Photo by Jim Fowler and his P-Base Orchid North American Orchid Website
Comparison photos between P leucophaea and P praeclara and type drawing
Photos/TYPE Drawing by Sheviak and Bowles and Rhodora 88: 278 Sheviak & M.L.Bowles 1986
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EARLY
Common Name The Western Praire Fringed Orchid
Flower Size .8 to 1.56" [2 to 3.9 cm]
Found in Manitoba, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Oklahoma in wet praires, fen and open plains as a medium to large sized, cold growing terrestrial orchid with 2 to 5, cauline, lanceolate, keeled, reduced in size to bracts towards the inflorescence that blooms in the late spring and early summer on a terminal, erect, racemose, 16 to 38" [40 to 95 cm] long, loosely to densely 10 to 24 flowered inflorescence.
This species is similar to P leucophaea but P preaclara has larger flowers and very delicate scent versus spicy in P leucophaea.
Synonyms Blephariglottis praeclara (Sheviak & M.L.Bowles) Baumbach & Lückel 2009; Fimbriella praeclara (Sheviak & M.L.Bowles) Szlach. & Rutk. 2000; Habenaria leucophaea var. praeclara (Sheviak & M.L.Bowles) Cronquist in H.A.Gleason & A.Cronquist 1991
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
* Rhodora 88: 278 Sheviak & M.L.Bowles 1986
AOS Bulletin Vol 68 No 1 1999 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 68 No 4 1999 photo fide;
Rudolf Schlechter Die Orchideen Band 1C lieferung 40 pg 2492 - 2564 Brieger 2000;
Acta Bot. Fenn. 169: 380 Szlach. & Rutk. 2000 as Fimbriella praeclara
AOS Bulletin Vol 73 No 10 2004 photo;
AOS Bulletin Vol 74 No 4 2005 photo fide;
Wild Orchids of the Praire's and Great Plains regions of North America P M Brown 2006;
Orchidee (Hamburg) 60: 126 Baumbach & Lückel 2009 as Blephariglottis praeclara
AOS Bulletin Vol 79 #3 2010 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 85 #1 2016 photo fide;
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