Cephalanthera rubra (Linne) L.C.M. Richard 1818 Photo courtesy of Pascal Pernot and the Orchids of France and Europe

to LATE to EARLY

Common Name The Red Cephalanthera - The Red Hellebourne

Flower Size 3/4" [1.95 cm]

A medium sized, cool to cold growing terrestrial orchid from Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Portugal, SPain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Czechloslavakia, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Balaeric Islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Yugoslavia, Albania, Eastern Aegean Islands, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Ukraine, Western Russia, Central Russia, Algeria, Morocco, Turkemenistan and Iran with an erect, slender, pubescent stem with brown basal leaf sheaths and carrying 3 to 8, oblong-lanceolaate below and linear-lanceolate above leaves that blooms in the late spring and early summer on an apical, to 4" [10 cm] long, lax, few to several [6 to 12] flowered inflorescence with flowers that do not open fully.

Synonyms Cephalanthera comosa Tineo 1843; Cephalanthera rubra f. alba Raynaud 1985; Cephalanthera rubra f. comosa (Tineo) Robatsch 2000; Cymbidium rubrum Sw. 1799; Dorycheile rubra Fuss 1866; Epipactis purpurea Crantz 1769; Epipactis rubra All. 1791; Epipactis rubra (L.) F.W.Schmidt 1795; Helleborine rubra (L.) Schrank 1814; Limodorum rubrum (L.) Kuntze 1891; *Serapias rubra Linne 17?

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Wild Orchids of Britain Summerhayes 1951 An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids Pridgeon 1982; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchdis Hawkes 1987; Manual of Orchids Stewart 1995; Botanica's Orchids Laurel Glen 2003; Flora's Orchids Nash & La Croix 2005; Orchids of Europe, North Africa and the Middle east Delforge 2005

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------