We all recognize orchids when we see them as showy specimens from the florist on corsages, in bouquets, or cared for in pots by the window sill. But they are growing wild in the northeast, too. Not as spectacular as what the florist has, but pretty special nonetheless. These family members are monocots, with parallel veins in the leaves rather than branching, sexual parts in three’s, and petal-like sepals. They are distinguished by producing irregular flowers that are not bilaterally-symetrical. Sepals may be green or colored like the petals. The lower petal may be modified into a distinctive “sack” or “spur.” Family members include lady’s slipper and helleborine.
