Eaton's ladiestresses

Description

Spiranthes lacera, commonly called the slender ladies'-tresses, is a species of orchid that is native to Eastern North America. It has a widespread range and is found in a variety of open habitats, both natural and disturbed. It produces a spiral of white flowers in the summer. There are two varieties recognized: S. lacera var. gracilis - Southern slender ladies' tresses, flowers more densely arranged in spiral, blooming later (late-July through August). Plant hairless and leaves usually absent at flowering. S. lacera var. lacera - Northern slender ladies' tresses, flowers more loosely arranged in spiral, blooming earlier (mid-July). Plant hairy and leaves usually present at flowering. Spiranthes is a genus of orchids in the subfamily Orchidoideae. They are known commonly as ladies tresses, ladies'-tresses, or lady's tresses. The genus is distributed in the Americas, Eurasia, and Australia. The genus name Spiranthes is derived from the Greek speira ("coil") and anthos ("flower"), and was inspired by the spirally arranged inflorescence. These are perennial herbs growing from fleshy root systems that range from slender to tuberous, and are occasionally stoloniferous. Most of the leaves are basal, but some species have leaves higher on the stem before the inflorescence matures, often taking the form of a sheath around the stem. The inflorescence is a terminal spike with flowers arranged in a characteristic loose or dense spiral. As in most other orchids, the flowers are resupinate, twisting during development into an upside-down position. The six tepals may be separate, or the three upper may be joined to form a hood over the lip petal. The lip is thin to somewhat fleshy, and two basal glands produce nectar. The flowers are usually white, cream, ivory, or yellowish, and two species have pink flowers; a few are also fragrant. The genus Spiranthes was first formally described in 1817 by Louis Claude Richard in his book De Orchideis Europaeis Annotationes. The genus's name is derived from ancient Greek words meaning "a coil" and "a flower". Since its original description, the genus has undergone many taxonomic changes. Spiranthes once contained all the species from the subtribe Spiranthinae. In 1920, Spiranthes was split into 24 genera. Revisions in 1951 and 1958 placed more species into the genus. During the 1990s it was divided again.