In our divine nature, beauty and a fairy tale are always nearby. Some plants want to be touched carefully and gently, because they are so fragile. So, the swamp dream is listed in the Red Book. And not in vain. This is a plant that grows in a swamp, which is why the name is appropriate. Every year the wild species of this plant is declining more and more, but they learned to cultivate it and use it to decorate rocky hills.
In another way, it is also called the northern orchid, because it is a small copy of a room beauty, only lives in the wild. I would like to get to know this herbaceous plant of the Orchid family - marsh napkin.
Legend of the northern orchid
There is one very beautiful legend about the marsh dream. It tells about one handsome and stately hunter. All the girls fell in love with him, but he was inaccessible. Once in the forest he met one amazing beauty in a dressfrom thin blades of grass and petals. On her head was a wreath of pine branches. They fell in love with the hunter with each other.
Often the young man began to go into the forest, returning without prey. This oddity became noticeable even to the villagers. Once one of the village girls followed the hunter and saw him with a forest beauty. The angry girl decided to outwit the guy, she took a sleeping potion from the healer and gave it to the hunter to drink. He fell asleep so soundly that he could not go to meet his beloved, who was waiting for him in the thicket of the forest.
The forest beauty found him sleeping near a tree, began to wake him up, but he was only sound asleep, protruding his lower lip. The beauty was the mistress of the forest and possessed great charms. Offended by her lover, she decided to turn him into a flower. The shape of the flower resembled an open pharynx. But the forest mistress did not leave her beloved hunter. Often she turned into a golden bee, flew to a flower and drank fragrant nectar from his lips. Isn't it beautiful!
Description of a broad-leaved plant
For the first time this species was described by Carl Linnaeus and named Serapias Longifolia. But soon this name was recognized as illegal, and Philip Miller gave the definition of Serapias palustris.
What does this grass that grows in the swamp look like? These are herbaceous bushes 30-70 cm high. They are distinguished by a long, stolon-shaped, branched, creeping rhizome with adventitious roots.
The upper part of the stem is slightly pubescent, has a light green or pinkish tint. The arrangement of the leaves is alternate. They haveoblong-lanceolate, pointed shape up to 20 cm long. At the top, the leaves are already small, similar to bracts.
Flower Shape
It is important to note that young plants do not bloom, flowers appear only after eleven years of life. The inflorescence has the shape of a brush. Each of them contains from six to 20 flowers with bracts. Anyone who is familiar with orchids will immediately imagine the shape of this flower. He has a protruding oblong lip without a spur.
Petals folded-wrinkled, divided into two parts. They are white with purple veins. But there is also a dark red swamp dream, the description of which you will see below. The flowers have six petals of different shapes and brightness with elegant frills and specks. Downturned flower heads seem to doze in anticipation of the moment of pollination.
Pollination Methods
Flowers have a straight drooping ovary. The nectar of the marsh dream has an intoxicating property. It attracts insects for pollination. Small creatures are the main means and method of pollination. Bumblebees, wasps, ants often sit on the plant. But sometimes self-pollination occurs. The flowering period is June-July. Seeds ripen in September, have a dusty form. The plant can be propagated by seeds or root division. In one ripe box there can be about 3000 dust particles.
There are two main types of dremlik: wintering and dark red. We have described winter flowers for you.
Areagrowth
Where does the marsh napkin live? He loves the outskirts of swamps, forest glades, groundwater outlets, thawed patches, limestones, swampy forests, damp meadows. Sometimes it can be found even in ditches and along the sides of highways and railways. Prefers neutral and alkaline soils. Its habitat is Western Europe, Scandinavia, Iran, the Himalayas, the Mediterranean of Asia Minor. It is also found in the latitudes of North America, Africa, Eurasia. In Russia, it grows in the Caucasus, in Western and Eastern Siberia. It can also be found in the Crimea. The plant is very fond of light, rarely found in shading.
Dark Red Dreamlik
Dremlik dark purple is a beautiful miniature orchid. These flowers grow near the banks of the Ural river Vagran. A small reserve has been formed here. People come here in July to admire the dark red bouquets. Long roots allow the plant to gain a foothold even on the stones of rocky cliffs.
Dark red dream also grows in the Sverdlovsk region, sometimes found in the Tyumen, Chelyabinsk regions, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Ulyanovsk region. It also grows in Ukraine, Belarus and the B altic states. In July, the dark red dremlik has a sweetish vanilla scent that attracts bees, wasps, bumblebees, and nectar-hungry beetles. Thanks to them, a wild orchid is pollinated and then reproduces with ripe seeds.
Use in landscape design, maintenance
Many gardeners and landscapersdesigners use the wild orchid as a decorative ornament. When planting it, flower growers use fortified slightly acidic water. The plant requires regular watering, cleaning from weeds, prevention from pests, such as aphids. After the end of fruiting, vegetative propagation is carried out. The seed will germinate when a microscopic fungus falls on it. After that, the seedling rests in the soil for two years and is fed by plant cells. Only after that does it begin to sprout above the ground.
Often a nappy is seated by dividing the root. To do this, part of the root system is separated and planted in open dark areas. For the winter, the bushes are covered with leaves, covered with earth so that the root system does not freeze. The attractiveness of the marsh dream lies in the pubescent stem part, bright inflorescences with long bracts. With its delicate beauty, the plant is a fragile element of the ecosystem.
Besides decorative purposes, people use marsh dremel as a medicinal plant. Swamp orchid is used to stimulate sexual impotence. Once upon a time, a love potion was prepared from the plant. A decoction of a wild orchid tones the central nervous system, strengthens the body, prevents cancer, and relieves toothache. Unfortunately, the northern orchid is listed in the Red Book. Especially the disappearance of this species is associated with land reclamation. People should take care of and protect the swamp dremlik, because this is a rather rare plant!
