2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Dremlik (Latin Epipactis) - a genus of herbaceous perennial plants living on earth, belonging to the Orchid family (Latin Orchidaceae). Unlike their epiphytic relatives, orchids, whose pseudobulbs often show only one green leaf to the world, plants of this genus have acquired numerous leaves.
What's in your name
The Latin name of the genus "Epipactis" takes its roots from the works of the "father of botany", the versatile ancient Greek scientist Theophrastus, who lived in the IV-III centuries BC. There is no consensus among botanists which plant Theophrastus called with the ancient Greek word, consonant with the Latin word "Epipactis", but there are several assumptions. A memorable quality of this plant was its ability to curdle milk.
As for the Russian name of the genus "Dremlik", then one should recall the racemose inflorescence of plants, in which not all flowers simultaneously reveal their petals to the world. Flowering begins at the bottom, gradually moving towards the top. Therefore, when the lower flowers are already feeding pollinating insects with their fragrant nectar, the upper flower buds seem to be in a state of dormancy, bowing their closed heads in anticipation of awakening.
Description
Due to the large number and diversity of orchids, botanists do not always have the same view of which classification "shelf" to define a particular plant. This also applies to information about the Dremliks, which is often very contradictory.
Since the plants of the Dremlik genus settled on the ground, they acquired an underground rhizome, from which additional non-branching roots spread along its entire length, extracting nutrients and moisture from the soil. In different species, the rhizome can be shortened or elongated, located in the soil almost vertically or obliquely, with a thickness of 0.1 to 0.4 centimeters. The surface of the rhizome is covered with brown or colorless scales, short and short-lived.
The thickness of the stems produced by the rhizome is 2, 5, or even 10 times greater than the thickness of the rhizome, reaching 1 centimeter. The surface of the stems can be bare or covered with short hairs.
Leaves on the stem are of two types: scaly vaginal and normal sessile, almost rounded in the lower part of the stem and thin lanceolate above the stem. The color of the leaf plate is green, but it can have a purple tint.
A racemose multi-flowered inflorescence is formed by bell-shaped or wide-opening flowers with six (6) free petals of white, green, purple, sometimes yellow, protected by sepals and bracts, the length of which can be very different: longer, shorter or equal to the length of the flower petals. The structure of flowers, like that of epiphytic orchids, delights and some embarrassment in front of the abundance of specific terms and unusual elements.
Barrel-shaped or oval capsules complete the plant's growing cycle.
Varieties
For the same reasons, which were mentioned above, the number of species belonging to the genus Dremlik is very different. But, the more perfect the research tools available to botanists become, the less contradictions arise, and plants, finally, find their clearly defined place in the many-sided nature.
So, according to scientists, in the vast Russian territory, 6 (six) species of the Dremlik genus can be found in the wild by curious trackers. While in North America, Africa and Eurasia, botanists count from 60 to 80 (or even up to 250) plant species of the Dremlik genus. Many of them are at risk of extinction, and therefore need human protection.
* Dremlik marsh (lat. Epipactis palustris)
* Small-leaved dremlik (Latin Epipactis microphylla)
* Giant Dremlik (Latin Epipactis gigantea)
* Dremlik dark red (Latin Epipactis atrorubens)
* Dremlik purple (Latin Epipactis purpurata).
