Phroogle: n. a reasonable-sized grouping of photographs, in a similar fashion to the way the word "herd" is used to describe a group of cattle. (<i>from Prem's idiotic dictionary, 7th ed.</i>).

Ok, folks. Strap on your seatbelts as we head around the globe on a photographic journey. First stop, the wet savannahs and pinelands of northern Florida. These areas are host to many beautiful species of flowers, including orchids. Some of the non-orchids seen in these areas include:

Blue Flag Irises

Spider Lilies

Pine Lilies

Orange Bachelor's Buttons

But the real subject of our hunt is the Snowy Orchid, Platanthera nivea. It is a not-very-common-but-not-very-rare orchid inhabiting moist, open spaces. Its white flowers glisten in the sunlight with an almost bluish cast. To add to their attractiveness, the flowers are mildly fragrant, with a scent not unlike orange blossoms:

Snowy Orchid (Platanthera nivea)

Snowy Orchid (Platanthera nivea), flower closeup

Snowy Orchid (Platanthera nivea), flower superduper closeup

P. nivea blooms sporadically from late May into late July, with a peak blooming in early June. It is a deciduous terrestrial orchid.

See the next post for part 2 of our journey.