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Cressler, Alan

Platanthera ciliaris

Platanthera ciliaris (L.) Lindl.

Orange Fringed Orchid, Yellow Fringed Orchid, Orange Plume, Bobwhite's-mocassin, Owl's-head

Orchidaceae (Orchid Family)

Synonym(s): Blephariglotis ciliaris, Habenaria ciliaris

USDA Symbol: plci2

USDA Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N)

Terminating a leafy stem is a large, many-flowered cluster of deep orange to bright yellow flowers with drooping, deeply fringed lip petals.

This is a very showy orchid of meadows and open woods. A more southern species, Orange Fringed Orchid (P. cristata), has a flower 3/8 of an inch (9 mm) wide and a spur 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) long, shorter than the fringed lip. Yellow Fringeless Orchid (P. integra), found in southern New Jersey and eastern North Carolina south to Florida and Texas and north to Tennessee, has orange-yellow flowers with a fringeless lip. Yellow Fringed Orchid and White Fringed Orchid (P. blephariglottis) frequently hybridize when growing together; similarly, Yellow Fringed crosses with Orange Fringed Orchid.

From the Image Gallery

66 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Fruit Type: Capsule
Size Notes: Up to about 3 feet tall.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: Orange , Yellow
Bloom Time: Jun , Jul , Aug , Sep

Distribution

USA: AL , AR , CT , DC , DE , FL , GA , IL , IN , KY , LA , MA , MD , MI , MO , MS , NC , NH , NJ , NY , OH , OK , PA , RI , SC , TN , TX , VA , VT , WV
Native Distribution: Southern New England (rare) and New York; south to Florida; west to Texas; north to Missouri, southern Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Native Habitat: Peaty or wet, sandy woods and thickets, dry meadows and slopes.

National Wetland Indicator Status

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	FACW				FACW	FACW		FACW	FACW

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.1 (Lichvar, R.W. 2013. The National Wetland Plant List: 2013 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2013-49: 1-241). Click here for map of regions.

From the National Organizations Directory

According to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is on display at the following locations:

Mt. Cuba Center - Hockessin, DE

Wildflower Center Seed Bank

LBJWC-1229 Collected 2008-11-06 in Jasper County by Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

1 collection(s) available in the Wildflower Center Seed Bank

Bibliography

Bibref 248 - Texas Wildflowers: A Field Guide (1984) Loughmiller, C. & L. Loughmiller

Search More Titles in Bibliography

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter

Additional resources

USDA: Find Platanthera ciliaris in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Platanthera ciliaris in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Platanthera ciliaris

Metadata

Record Modified: 2023-04-25
Research By: TWC Staff

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