Epipactis helleborine

Epipactis helleborine grows to a maximum height of 92 cm (36 in) and has broad dull green leaves which are strongly ribbed and flat. [3] The flowers are arranged in long drooping racemes with dull green sepals and shorter upper petals. The lower labellum is pale red and is much shorter than the upper petals.[4]

Achlorophyllous, white Epipactis helleborine plants have been found. Achlorophyllous forms tend to be shorter, as small as 17cm. [5]

Flowering occurs June-September.[6]

This species is widespread across much of Europe and Asia, from Portugal to China, as well as northern Africa.[1][7][8]

In North America, it is an introduced species and widely naturalized mostly in the Northeastern United States, eastern Canada and the Great Lakes Region, but also in scattered locations in other parts of the continent.[9][10][11] In the US it is sometimes referred to as the "weed orchid" or "weedy orchid" and continues to spread throughout the country to new areas including Michigan,[12] Wisconsin,[13] and the San Francisco Bay Area.[14]

• 
  Distribution in North America

Found in woods and hedge-banks[15] and often not far from paths near human activity.[16] It is one of the most likely European orchids to be found within a city, with many sites for example in Glasgow, London and Moscow. Sometimes spotted beside car parks.[17]

This species of orchid is pollinated by several species of Hymenoptera, particularly the common wasp, but also other species in the genera Vespula and Dolichovespula. Flowers release a sweet nectar to attract the wasps, which has an intoxicating effect on them.[18][19] Eight varieties of Epipactis helleborine in central Europe (Lower Silesia, Poland) had their nectar studied and they were found to contain naturally occurring oxycodone (as well as another narcotic-like opioid) in minute amounts.[20]

Epipactis helleborine requires a mycorrhizal symbiosis to germinate successfully and remains partially dependent upon the fungus when plants mature, however it is not particularly selective among fungal species. Fungi associated with the live roots include Tuber, Helotiales, Peziza, Leptodontidium, Hydnotrya and Wilcoxina.[21][22]

It has been suggested that the presence of this orchid species in a woodland is an indicator that edible truffles can be found there,[23] but this is not always the case.

A rather long list of names have been proposed for subspecies, varieties and forms of Epipactis helleborine, far too many to list here.[2] This is not unusual for such a widespread species. At present (June 2014) only the following are accorded international acceptance:[1]

1. Epipactis helleborine subsp. bithynica (Robatsch) Kreutz - Turkey
2. Epipactis helleborine subsp. degenii (Szentp. & Mónus) Kreutz - Greece
3. Epipactis helleborine subsp. densifolia (W.Hahn, Passin & R.Wegener) Kreutz - Turkey
4. Epipactis helleborine subsp. helleborine - widespread
5. Epipactis helleborine subsp. latina W.Rossi & E.Klein - Italy, former Yugoslavia
6. Epipactis helleborine subsp. leutei (Robatsch) Kreutz - Austria, Czech Republic
7. Epipactis helleborine subsp. levantina Kreutz, Óvári & Shifman - Turkey
8. Epipactis helleborine subsp. molochina (P.Delforge) Kreutz - Spain
9. Epipactis helleborine subsp. neerlandica (Verm.) Buttler - Great Britain, Sweden, Belgium, Netherlands, France, Germany
10. Epipactis helleborine subsp. orbicularis (K.Richt.) E.Klein - Austria, Czech Republic, Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, France, Spain, Italy, Baltic Republics
11. Epipactis helleborine subsp. schubertiorum (Bartolo, Pulv. & Robatsch) Kreutz - Italy
12. Epipactis helleborine var. tangutica (Schltr.) S.C.Chen & G.H.Zhu - China
13. Epipactis helleborine subsp. tremolsii (Pau) E.Klein - France, Spain, Portugal, Sardinia, Italy, Algeria, Morocco

• Den virtuella floran - Distribution
• Opioids in nectar