The flowers of the Italian orchid resemble a naked man wearing a straw hat
The Italian orchid, also known as the naked man orchid or Italian man orchid, is a species in the genus Orchis of the family Orchidaceae. The plant grows 20-50 cm tall, with terminal flowers that are whitish pink or purple. The tepals are helmet-shaped with dark stripes, and the overall shape of the flower looks like a naked man wearing a straw hat. The capsules are upright. The flowering period is April-May. It grows in grasslands, limestone areas, abandoned farmland, and woodland areas. It is native to the Mediterranean region.
Italian orchid
The Italian orchid is a terrestrial herbaceous plant, growing 20-50 cm tall, with fleshy rhizomes at the base. The stem is upright, cylindrical, with 1-3 tubular sheaths near the base; leaves are borne above the sheaths. The leaves are basal, 1-5 in number, slightly fleshy, narrowed at the base into a sheath that clasps the stem. The leaf blades have distinct wavy markings, and the leaf surface sometimes bears brown spots. There are also 3 or 4 dried remnant leaf sheaths.
Italian orchid
The inflorescence is a terminal raceme, a spherical spike about 5 to 15 cm long, bearing numerous flowers. The inflorescence is cylindrical, and the inflorescence axis is hairless. The floral bracts are usually upright and spreading, lanceolate, shorter than the flowers. The ovary is twisted, hairless, and bears a pedicel. The flowers are densely arranged on the inflorescence. The flowers are relatively small, generally pink or purple, rarely pure white. The flowers are resupinate (the labellum is positioned below); the tepals are helmet-shaped with dark stripes, and the overall shape of the flower looks like a naked man wearing a straw hat. The sepals form a straw-hat shape, with the lateral sepals spreading; the petals often lean against the median sepal to form a hood, with edges lacking eyelashes; the labellum often extends forward, resembling a person's limbs. It is distinctly different in shape from the petals, 3-lobed to 4-lobed, with edges lacking eyelashes, narrowed at the base into a claw, with a spur at the base; the column is upright, the anther is pale pink and purple, the anther is located at the top of the column, the connective is slightly broad, the anther locules are 2, parallel; pollinia 2, granular-farinaceous with small masses, with caudicles and viscidia; viscidia 2, each embedded in 1 viscous globule, the two viscous globules together enclosed in 1 bursicle of the rostellum, the bursicle usually nearly spherical, protruding above the mouth of the spur in front of the column; stigma 1, concave, located in the cavity below the rostellum; the rostellum is located between the two anther locules at the lower part of the anther; staminodes 2, located on both sides of the base of the anther. The capsules are upright. The flowering period is April-May.
Italian orchid
Plant culture:
The Italian orchid is a blush-inducing flower, and many netizens exclaim upon seeing it: "So clever!" "There's actually such a flower in the world?" "I've learned so much!" "How amazing!" Some netizens cannot believe such a flower exists in the world, and opinions vary widely.
In the West, there is also a legend that if a man is very flirtatious, plays with women, and is irresponsible, he will become this naked man flower in the next life, making a fool of himself, and finally withering away.