Ophrys apifera- the bee orchid

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

It's kinda ironic, we're making a group order for these kinds of orchids.

They grow in calcareous sands, often in fields. The soil can sometimes be covered by dead plant material, including bark. In the wild, the roots of the wild grasses and other wild flowers help keep the soil from compacting too much and they also aerate the soil.

They have a definite dormancy period. I believe they are winter growing/summer dormant. They bloom in the spring.

[MysticOrchid]

These grow in the forest in my countryside Yeah, the soil is all covered with dead plant material, some moss and other rotting stuff but they seem to like this kind of soil, and the most interesting part of it is that you can find them in groups, one plant one meter far from the other. They are some kind of group growers, but not much sociable Here, in my country they're quite rare plants to see, but this year they made an explosion of population in the woods, so you can really easy notice them in the greenery, in different locations in the forest. You can see them just as a single plant, but the "unsociable" groups are common Come here to see the beautifull wild life of Macedonia, and the wild orchids as well! You'll be welcomed

[euplusia]

We also have about 5 different species of Ophrys growing in the countryside and even in gardens of my city hills . Most people do not know them nor do they regard them as orchids. They are floral elements from the Mediterranean, who followed extensive cattle farming and sheep farming and prefer open warm and dry sunny grasslands. They are dependent upon pollination by young unexperienced male insects or spiders.
Without constant human help the pastureground here is rapidly overgrown by trees.
It is typical for Ophrys that in some years there are hundreds of flowering plants, while in other years only very few flowers can be found. This is due to rainfall in wintertime. Also it is typical that the bulbs can survive in the ground for 1-2 years without forming leaves.
The stocks are mostly threatend by changes in agricultural using. Depending on high yields pushes aside traditional methods of farming and destroys the living space for both plants and their specific pollinators. That is the main reason why this Mediterranean flowering plants, that invaded after the end of the last Ice Age, are endangered here.

I am very much for protecting nature and plants by laws.
But all this is useless as long as we do not promote understanding and love for nature, and keep on running for profit.
So I am glad that you discovered your joy of nature.

[theroc1217]

Originally Posted by King_of_orchid_growing:)

It's kinda ironic, we're making a group order for these kinds of orchids.

Where is this? I saw an old thread, but I thought that was already done with.

[lambelkip]

Originally Posted by theroc1217

Where is this? I saw an old thread, but I thought that was already done with.

here's the thread:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...oup-order.html

here's the older thread, including information on our experiences growing them:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...l-orchids.html

[MysticOrchid]

Originally Posted by euplusia

We also have about 5 different species of Ophrys growing in the countryside and even in gardens of my city hills . Most people do not know them nor do they regard them as orchids. They are floral elements from the Mediterranean, who followed extensive cattle farming and sheep farming and prefer open warm and dry sunny grasslands. They are dependent upon pollination by young unexperienced male insects or spiders.
Without constant human help the pastureground here is rapidly overgrown by trees.
It is typical for Ophrys that in some years there are hundreds of flowering plants, while in other years only very few flowers can be found. This is due to rainfall in wintertime. Also it is typical that the bulbs can survive in the ground for 1-2 years without forming leaves.
The stocks are mostly threatend by changes in agricultural using. Depending on high yields pushes aside traditional methods of farming and destroys the living space for both plants and their specific pollinators. That is the main reason why this Mediterranean flowering plants, that invaded after the end of the last Ice Age, are endangered here.

I am very much for protecting nature and plants by laws.
But all this is useless as long as we do not promote understanding and love for nature, and keep on running for profit.
So I am glad that you discovered your joy of nature.

I completely agree with you. We must protect this kind of plants which are rare, especially talking about rare orchids such is this Ophrys apifera. I can't still figure out why no one knows in my town about this rare kind of orchids which are, after all, next to their feet! I asked many people that are some kind of "collectors" of healing herbs in the forest, for personal uses, if they know about this kind of rare orchid, but no proper answer. Some of them say that they only know about Orchis, which tubers are used for making some kind of drink called " salep ", but never heard of bee orchids.
Anyway, our job that nature gave us is to protect them from destroying their natural habitat.