Spiranthes lucida (Shining ladies’-tresses)

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Spiranthes lucida (H.H. Eaton) Ames

Shining ladies’-tresses

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Liliopsida	Monocots (plants with a single seed leaf); includes the lily family
Subclass	Liliidae	Includes lilies, orchids, and many others
Order	Asparagales	A diverse group that includes asparagus
Family	Orchidaceae	Orchid family
Genus	Spiranthes	From the Greek speira, “spiral,” and anthos, “flower,” referring to the coiled or spiral character of the inflorescence, and hence the common name “ladies tresses”
Species	lucida

About plant names...

Shining ladies’-tresses are native to eastern North America. They prefer saturated, calcium-bearing, and gravelly or sandy soils, such as damp thickets and meadows.

Plants: 1½-16" (4-40 cm) high, with leaves only at the base.

Leaves: 3-5 light green basal leaves are lanceolate to oblong, up to 4½" (12 cm) long and ¼-½" (7-15 mm) wide. They are distinctly shiny.

Flowers: Up to 20 flowers are wrapped in a tight spiral on a hairy spike. Sepals are ~³/₁₆" (5-5.5 mm) long, and fused at the base for ~0.7 mm. The interior of the tubular flower is yellow, with green lines. Flowers appear from May to early July, earlier than similar species.

Fruits: Seeds have a net-veined coating.

Here are some similar species:

8/28/2021 · Otter Brook Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 4 × 6" (11 × 14 cm)

8/28/2021 · Otter Brook Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

	*Spiranthes cernua*	*Spiranthes romanzoffiana*
Common Name	common ladies’-tresses	hooded ladies’-tresses
Plant	Up to 16" (40 cm) tall, though most of this height is the flower stalk.	2½-16" (7-40 cm) high.
Flowers	The raceme (flowerhead) is up to 4½" (12 cm) high, roughly cone-shaped, on a single stem well above the leaves. Tiny white flowers about ⅜" (1 cm) long spiral around the spike. Flowers are tubular in shape, *yellow in the center*, with small sharp-tipped petals. Flowers appear between August and November.	Up to 40 flowers are arranged spirally around a *nearly hairless* spike ¾-6" (2-14 cm) high. Sepals and petals are *fused together, and ¼-⅜" (8-12 mm) long. They appear from May to September. Sepals are broad and white*
Leaves	A few long, narrow leaves occur, mostly at the base of the plant; they are 4-8" (10-20 cm) long and ⅛-¾" (5-20 mm) wide.	2 to 3, rarely up to 5 Basal leaves are 2½-8" (7-20 cm) × ⅛-⅜" (6-12 mm). Leaves are linear or lanceolate.
Range/ Zones
Type	Wild	Wild

Online References:

Goorchids.northamericanorchidcenter.org

Orchids.botany.wisc.edu

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Www.nrc.gov (PDF)

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 380

Ibidium plantagineum (Raf.) House

Spiranthes lucida description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 31 Aug 2021.

Range:

About this map...