A flower spike began in May and we watched patiently as white buds formed. There was a moment's consternation, when we woke up one morning to discover something had nipped out the lowest flower bud. But after defensive works were erected to deter Wood Pigeons (the usual suspects!), using chicken wire and most of a 2 litre drinks bottle, we relaxed and waited for the show.
We weren't to be disappointed, as earlier this month, the white buds opened to reveal a gorgeous Bee Orchid, Ophrys apifera. Bizarrely, so we learned, the bee that the flower has evolved to mimic, isn't native to the UK. So the British Bee Orchid is self-pollinating.
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| Fort Orchid |
5 comments:
Magnificent specimen!
Much better than daisies.
An exceptional find Graeme.
Ha! The Admiral was correct. It's a very cool looking orchid.
So the Admiral was correct then!
Apologies, all, for the tardy response, but I have got a good excuse! Hopefully, I have some decent material for post or two (he said, mysteriously), though there's not much that can top a cracking orchid popping up in your garden.
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