Orchids of Crete
Jane McGary (Wed, 01 Jun 2005 17:39:45 PDT)
Dell SHerk noticed my remark,
I was surprised when visiting Crete last month to see how robust G. italicus
is there; it (like the tulips) obviously responds well to the chemical
fertilizers that, according to conservationists, are being over-applied and
killing off the famous orchids.
and wrote
The famous orchids of Crete? How intriguing! - and disturbing.
There are 50 or more species of terrestrial orchids on the island, many of
them belonging to the genus Ophrys, and many of them (especially the
Ophrys) very hard to tell apart! They tend to grow with several genera, and
even several species of the same genus, together in small areas where
apparently the habitat is just right and the goats and sheep don't get them
every year.
Jane McGary