Early-purple Orchid

Description:

Another colony of Early-purple orchid (a.k.a. early spring orchid), found very close to the first spot (see my previous spotting). This terrestrial orchid is a flowering, herbaceous perennial plant, with leaves grouped in basal rosette, and flowering stems 30-50cm tall. Stems regroup 10-20 flowers of various shades of purple. Individual flowers are about 2-3cm in diameter.

Habitat:

Found few large colonies along the walking trail, growing on small clearings in coniferous forests in Jura mountain range, at about 1400m of altitude. This was a second colony (for the first one, check my previous spotting), found some 300m down the trail on these pastures. The area where we found them is a highly protected zone of a Jura Natural Park - access highly restricted, and allowed few months per year.