Dactylorhiza majalis - Marsh Orchid

Dactylorhiza majalis, commonly known as the Wide-leaved Orchid, Marsh Orchid or May Dactylorhiza, is a beautiful wild orchid found naturally in damp, clayey soils. This perennial species with spring flowering is recognized by its floral spikes adorned with light purple flowers streaked with dark purple, and its glaucous green foliage speckled with brown to purple. Like many terrestrial orchids, it has specific requirements but can become prolific where it thrives. Plant this orchid in a sunny spot, in a small moist meadow or on the banks of a pond. It tolerates limestone well.

Dactylorhiza majalis is distributed in Western Europe, Central Europe, and southern Scandinavia. It is a species that is closely associated with wet to flooded, clayey, and often limestone soils. The Marsh Orchid belongs to the orchid family. From a botanical point of view, the genus Dactylorhiza is separated from the genus Orchis because of the presence of finger-shaped roots (Dactyle = finger; Rhiza = rhizome).

The May Dactylorhiza is perfectly hardy. Its foliage emerges in spring and disappears early in the season, sometimes as early as August. Flowering occurs between May and late June, depending on the climate. In the center of the foliage, a hollow stem rises, reaching an average height of 30cm (12in). The inflorescence is a dense spike adorned with numerous flowers surrounded by long bronze-green bracts. The flowers are a vibrant purple colour. Each flower is composed of spread-out lateral sepals, an upper sepal, and two lateral petals that form a galea. The labellum is trilobed, streaked with dark purple on a pink-purple background. The leaves are oblong to lanceolate in shape, almost always maculated with violet brown.

Dactylorhiza majalis, sometimes called the Marsh Orchid, easily establishes itself and self-seeds in moist, sunny meadows, along the edges of natural ponds, in rich soil, even clayey or limestone soil. Our plants do not come from wild digging but from specialized nurseries. In nature, this orchid grows among grasses such as Molinia caerulea subsp. caerulea; you can perfectly reproduce this association in your garden.