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A great year for orchids
As part of our annual monitoring, we get to experience the best that our reserves have to offer. This year we've seen some encouraging numbers for orchids.
My orchids
Local lawn care expert and former head greenkeeper, Ian Stephens, loves grass and his work creating healthy, vibrant lawns at homes across Notts and Lincs. But Ian has long seen ‘beyond the green…
Cowslips and orchids at Chettisham Meadow
Helen Moore and the Ely Local Group have made a record count of green-winged orchids
Early purple orchid
The Early purple orchid is one of the first orchids to pop up in spring. Look for its pinkish-purple flowers from April, when bluebells still carpet our woodland floors. Its leaves are dark green…
Southern marsh orchid
This is probably the most widespread and commonest of the marsh orchids.
Monthly Meander - Orchids and Other Wildflowers
Join us for a guided walk around the reserve
Lizard orchid
The petals of the rare Lizard orchid's flowers form the head, legs and long tail of a lizard. They are greenish, with light pink spots and stripes, and smell strongly of goats! Spot this tall…
Bee orchid
The bee orchid is a sneaky mimic - the flower’s velvety lip looks like a female bee. Males fly in to try to mate with it and end up pollinating the flower. Sadly, the right bee species doesn’t…
Frog orchid
This unassuming orchid is easily overlooked. It is found patchily across the UK, but has been declining for decades.
Pyramidal orchid
The pyramidal orchid lives up to its name - look for a bright pinky-purple, densely packed pyramid of flowers atop a green stem. It likes chalk grassland, sand dunes, roadside verges and quarries…
Green-winged orchid
A short, but pretty plant of unimproved grasslands, the Green-winged orchid gets its name from the green veins in the 'hood' of its flowers. Look for it in May and June.