epipactis helleborine
 

this is a common invasive species here in norcal. it has a tendency to produce a furled inflorescence, which straightens up over time (compare picture 1/3 with picture 4).

some pictures were taken on a hiking trail; two (i think the last two uploaded) were taken in the backyard of the new house we've recently moved into. :)

edit: eek! they're all sideways! hopefully i've fixed it now.

the last two pictures are of the same plant. it's simply enormous compared to the others i've seen (2x tall, stem 2x as thick), probably because it benefits from the lawn sprinklers. :)

I've had these grow in my yard here in NJ. They grow out of people's lawns until they meet the lawn mower. I've also seen them in the woods in Ulster Co. NY. I always wondered if they were endangered like so many native orchids... obviously not even native.

i think this species is considered a weed in many parts of the u.s. . it originates from europe/asia. we have one native Epipactis species in California, Epipactis gigantea, but it's much rarer than its cousin.

it's our friend the invasive species again... waking up for the spring. :)

it seems that the blooming plants from last year haven't appeared this year. maybe they're spent after flowering.

Neat, I have read that the reason this species is so invasive is that it is resistant to almost all means of removal, including weed killer. I have yet to see these, they are pretty rare here in mt, I think they are only known from one or two locations. I have gotten lucky and stumbled across E. gigantea accidentally while looking for other orchids though, which was a welcome surprise.

This is one weed I don't have! I'm thrilled to not have a clue about it except it reminds me a little of Buckthorn.

Here in Michigan, at my previous residence in the thumb, they had a particular affinity for growing among my hostas in the garden.