This beautiful field guide offers orchid enthusiasts everything they need to know about what, where, and when to find wild orchids in the southeastern United States. With 285 color photos and detailed original drawings, it will delight both the new admirer and the long-time lover of these seductive flowering plants. Covering a region that includes eastern Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and northern Florida, as well as southeastern North Carolina, and southern Arkansas, the book presents all the information necessary to correctly identify 76 species of orchids, 4 varieties, 61 forms, and 13 hybrids. It includes some of the rarest species found in the United States as well as several new species and subspecific taxa that recently have been documented in this area but have never been described in book format. No existing field guide provides all available information for these states. Orchid identification presents even experienced botanists with a challenge. Paul Martin Brown, author of several successful orchid books for other U.S. regions, undertakes this task in a logical, easy-to-understand manner. The guide is designed for locating information easily while one foot is in the proverbial bog. Brown's approach to the complex vocabulary of botanical taxonomy is clear and his explanation of botanical keys will aid the novice orchid hunter as well as the trained orchid professional. Created for identification in the field or anywhere live specimens are found, the key is not strictly technical. Its dependence on color and measurements has been kept to a minimum, allowing readers to use it without removing orchids from the wild. Supporting material addresses common questions about habitat, color forms, and hybrids and also clarifies the taxonomically confusing genera Spiranthes and Platanthera.

Illustrated by: Stan Folsom