flowering tubers of a Himantoglossum hircinum


The goat's belt tongue (Himantoglossum hircinum) is a dry field orchid in the orchid/belly tongue family. 
It flowers from May to June and thrives best in bright locations on dry, basic,
 nutrient-poor soil with moderately changing humidity. This orchid species comes from 
the Mediterranean region and already puts out its rosette leaves in autumn. 
It therefore benefits from milder winters in which the Bocks - belt tongue can 
also occur north and west of the Alps. These specimens offered here come from orchid
 breeders in France and were artificially grown from seed pods.


Description
Height:        30-80cm

Flower:        Middle section of the 3-part lip up to 6 cm long, spirally twisted, conical spur, 3–4 mm long,
               smells like billy goats, especially in warm weather

Stem:          with up to 30 cm long, cylindrical, multi-flowered inflorescence

leaves:        elongate-ovate to lanceolate, enclosing the stem

Occurrence:    Dry meadows, rough meadows, stony slopes exposed to the west, south or east, low-nitrogen gravel sites