Nederlands: Soldaatje
Español: Orquídea soldado
Français: Orchis guerrier
Deutsch: Helm-Knabenkraut
Family: Orchidaceae - Orchid family
Flowering time: April-June
Height: 20-50cm
Altitude: to 1800m
Colour: purple, pink, rose, lilac, rarely white
Leaves: basal leaves oval to lanceolate, flat, shiny, unspotted
Habitat: grassland, open scrub, woodland margins, road sides, calcareous soils
Distribution: around Europe, reaching as far north as southern Sweden, but rather rare in the Mediterranean areas
Notes: The inflorescence forms a purplish dense cone consisting of 10 to 40 flowers. In each flower the sepals and side petals are gathered together to form a pointed ´helmet´. Orchis militaris is sometimes confused with Orchis simia, but the lip is whitish at the base and the ´legs´ and ´arms´ broader and flat, not markedly curved. In Orchis simia the flowers at the top of the flower open first, in Orchis militaris the lowermost. Orchis militaris hybridizes with a number of orchids, for example with Orchis simia and with Orchis purpurea. The largest colonies of Orchis militaris can be found on chalk grasslands in the southern part of the Netherlands. It is a protected species in many countries and on the European Red List of Vascular Plants.
Related key words: Heemtuin Tenellaplas Rockanje, Zuid-Limburg, Cannerhei Maastricht, Wijlre akkers, Gronseledel (Wijlre), Oombos Gerendal, Orchideeëntuin Gerendal, kalkgrasland, blauwgrasland, Nederlandse Rode Lijst, Vlaamse Rode Lijst, Europese Rode Lijst, Pyrenees, Pyreneeën, Pirineos, Collado de Oroel (Jaca), Lárede (Sabiñánigo), Civís (La Seo de Urgell), Alps, Suffolk, Buckinghamshire Chilterns, Tauberland
