Visiting Chenonceau in June

 I've been to the famous Chateau de Chenonceau multiple times in the past few weeks.

 

Wild native Bee Orchid Ophrys apifera.

Wild native Ivy Broomrape Orobanche hederae.

Floral arrangement in the entry hall.

A small early instar Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis larva.

Roses.

Bee hive. Further reading: Teaching Hive at Chenonceau.

This swathe of pink 'wild flower' or 'prairie' planting is new for this year.

Young Japanese women enjoying their visit. I love how they are channeling their inner 19th century wood block print artist.

Green-winged Orchid

This year I was introduced to a large colony of Green-winged Orchids Anacamptis morio (Fr. Orchis bouffon) that I previously had no idea existed. As is often the case with this species, the colony is associated with old vineyards. Once upon a time the south facing slopes above Yzeures sur Creuse were planted with vines. Now the vines have gone, but the orchids which grew amongst them remain.

The inflorescences are made up of a maximum of about 20 flowers, which can range in colour from violet to purple to lilac pink or even white. The petals form a cap which is faintly striped with grey-green on the outside. The wide labellum has a pale centre, often spotted with purple. The nectar spur is short, thick, flattened and dimpled at the tip.

This is a species that flowers early in the season, which is April here in the Touraine.

It grows in full sun in natural grassland, woodland edges and clearings.

Its natural distribution is vast, from Iran to Norway, and all of the Mediterranean basin.

In the Touraine the species is not threatened although habitat destruction must be a concern. In Asia Minor colonies can be wiped out because the bulbs are used commercially to make salep, a flour made from the tubers that is used to make drinks and ice cream.

Checking Out the Early Orchids

I needed cheering up the other day so Simon and I went for a drive around our various local orchid sites to see what was out yet. 

 

Early Purple Orchid Orchis mascula (Fr. Orchis mâle).

Early Purple Orchids.

Knitting bombed bicycles over the voie verte (greenway) in Bossay sur Claise.

Monkey Orchid Orchis simia (Fr. Orchis singe).

Country road.

Lady Orchid Orchis purpurea (Fr. Orchis pourpre).

Early Spider Orchid Ophrys sphegodes (Fr. Ophrys araignée)

Lupin crop.

Canola pollen on the road.

Biodiversity Outreach

 A month or so ago my friend Yolande rang me up and asked if I'd accompany her to the State primary school to give a talk to the CM2 pupils (10-11 year olds) about what was special about the little park at the end of our street. Yolande is a Preuilly municipal council member and her area of responsibility is education. I've been indoctrinating her for years about what a marvellous little biodiversity reserve the park and the adjacent nature strip and grounds of the public library are. She's listened and taken on board my suggestions, so these areas are not scalped by the council works mowers quite so often, and wild orchids, fungi and uncommon ground nesting hymenoptera abound.

 

Me talking to the kids.

So we hatched a plan for Yolande to talk about the cultural heritage in the park ie it was a medieval cemetery, with a newly restored late 15th century chapel of ease on the site, containing very important wall paintings. Then I talked about all the species which inhabit the park. The kids want to create a project to improve the park and we wanted to steer them away from turning it into a playground and focus more on it being a peaceful haven for people and wildlife.

I think the kids received the message. They are very keen to hang wind chimes, put up bird nest boxes, maybe an insect hotel, and to create info boards. Yolande and I are less keen on the wind chime idea, and they've been firmly told that they have to be made from natural materials, not plastic... We are OK with nest boxes, and I think Yolande and I like the idea of an insect hotel more than the kids do. Although several kids reported that they have a bee hotel at home in their garden, with occupants, so that's good. 

The one thing we all agreed on was doing info boards. I've been wanting to do one for several years and it is a perfect project for kids. They can take all the photos, do the layout and artwork, and contribute to the text. I look forward to where this will all go. We are planning to have a 'field trip' later in the year, when I can show them orchids and bees in real life, rather than just photos.

Walking From le Grand Pressigny

On Monday 14 October both Simon and I joined the Phoenix en Claise walking group for a 5.75 kilometre walk from le Grand Pressigny. It was remarkably warm, in the low 20s celsius, and took an hour and a half. Simon did 3 kilometres and then peeled off to return to the car. He's not quite fit enough at the moment for the full walk and was worried he would conk out.

 

A friend greets us from her window.

A village house being restored.

The Chateau du Grand Pressigny.

The ruined keep of the Chateau du Grand Pressigny.

The Nymphaeum, a spring fed pool that served as a relaxation station for 17th century aristocratic women.

An Ivy Bee Colletes hederae (Fr. Collète du lierre) doing what it does best -- feeding on ivy flowers.

Yellow Stainers Agaricus xanthodermus (Fr. Agaric jaunissant), growing in typical fashion, through a hedgerow.

Lizard Orchid Himantoglossum hircinum (Fr. Orchis bouc) leaf rosettes.

Big Sheath Mushroom Volvopluteus gloiocephalus (Fr. Volvaire gluante).

View looking down the Claise Valley.

One of Darwin's Mysteries Solved

Charles Darwin, that global household name, loved orchids and was intrigued by their many mysteries. He famously predicted that an unknown hitherto unobserved species of long tongued moth must be the nocturnal pollinator of the orchid Angraecum sesquipedale, a species with a particularly lengthy nectar carrying spur, endemic to Madagascar.

But one mystery, much closer to home, eluded him, and has only recently been solved. It concerns one of the most common wild orchids in Britain. We get it too in the Touraine Loire Valley but here it is not common, especially in the south where we live. I find it more on our travels especially in the mountains.

 

What Darwin never figured out was why the Common Spotted Orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii (Fr. Orchis de Fuchs) is not scattered about everywhere. After all, their seeds are nearly microscopically small and can be easily dispersed by the wind. In the end though, it is their tiny size which provides the clue as to why Common Spotted Orchids grow in clumps and close knit colonies rather than in the more isolated and scattered way that one might at first think should be the case.

 

Common Spotted Orchid seeds are so small that they don't contain the supply of nutrients that the seeds of other plants tend to hold. That means to survive they must fall near enough to their parent plant to latch on to its network of mycorrhizal fungi, which will then supply the necessary nutrients. Common Spotted Orchids can be seen in large dense colonies, but few of the individual plants will be more than a few centimetres from an older, more established plant.

Further Reading: Dactylorhiza fuchsii on Loire Valley Nature