Spiranthes amesiana Schlechter is often included as a synonym of S. torta; recent studies indicate that it may be a distinct species. It is said to differ from S. torta in its denser inflorescence, spade-shaped lip with a crenulate-ciliate margin, and densely pubescent basal calli. Within the area covered by the flora, it is restricted to extreme southern Florida; it also has been collected in the Bahamas and Nicaragua.
Spiranthes torta, the Southern ladies’ tresses, is a terrestrial orchid native to Florida, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean Islands and Bermuda.[1]
Spiranthes torta plants are 7-50 cm tall and have 2-3 basal leaves which wither before they bloom. There is also several leaves along the stem which are reduced to bracts. Flowers are arranged in a spiral along the stem. They are white, with a green inside of the labellum. Bloom time is May to June.[2]
Spiranthes torta can be found in the Bahamas, Belize, Bermuda, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Florida, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, the Leeward Islands, the Gulf of Mexico, southeastern Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Trinidad-Tobago and the Windward Islands.[3] It prefers dry habitat, usually growing in pine forest.[2]
Spiranthes torta was first described by Carl Peter Thunberg in 1791 (as Ophrys torta).[4]
Media related to Spiranthes torta at Wikimedia Commons
Spiranthes torta, the Southern ladies’ tresses, is a terrestrial orchid native to Florida, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean Islands and Bermuda.
