Rare Orchids and Wild Flowers

The Community Garden is situated within the Community Orchard, where the council’s No Mow May policy has paid dividends in terms of the wild flowers which have been blooming profusely in early summer.

We noticed stitchwort, mouse ear, bird's foot trefoil, meadow vetchling, dove's foot crane's bill, daisies, buttercups, plus many different grasses. We were also delighted to find three different types of orchid.

The rarest of these is the seldom seen bee orchid. This attracts male bees with velvety flowers which look like female bees. The opportunistic flower emits pheromones which trick the male bees into mating with it, thus pollinating the orchid in the process.

We have also seen another type of rare orchid in the orchard, the pyramidal orchid. This has a pink flower which is shaped like a pyramid and is pollinated by bees and moths.

The image below shows the bee orchid in the Community Orchard. Check out our Community Garden Gallery for more images of the wild flowers.