Gymnadenia conopsea (L.) R.Br. - Orchidaceae - chalk fragrant orchid, **Mücken-Händelwurz**

Flowers pale pink to lilac, or white (G.conopsea var.alba), fragrant. "Their light scent is similar to cloves." \\ [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gymnadenia_conopsea]]

"Gymnadenia conopsea s.l. is a perennial, terrestrial orchid that is widely distributed across Eurasia... G. conopsea (Chalk Fragrant Orchid): Flowers rose pink, rarely white (7)10–11(13) mm, sweet scented; lateral outer perianth segments 5–6 × 1 mm long, bent downwards; labellum (4.0)5.0–6.0(6.5) × (4.5)5.5–6.5(7.0) mm, with obvious lobes; spur (11)12–14(17) mm; flowering June to July." \\
[Meekers, Tine, et al. "Biological flora of the British Isles: Gymnadenia conopsea sl." Journal of Ecology 100.5 (2012): 1269-1288] \\
[[https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2012.02006.x]]

The flower scent of this species can vary from plant to plant to an extreme degree. Main components of the trapped scents (9-11.30 am) were benzyl acetate (37.4-61.0%), benzyl benzoate (9.5-20.1%), methyl eugenol (5.7-6.2%), eugenol (0.2-9.5%), elemicine (3.1-5.4%), benzyl alcohol (1.4-2.6%), cinnamic alcohol (0.1-1.6%), phenylethyl alcohol (0.1-2.3%), phenylethyl acetate (0.4-1.4%), and (Z)-3-hexenol (0.2-0.6%). \\
"One group is characterised by an pronounced //'spicy-floral'// scent, attributable primarly to eugenol and cinnamic alcohol, whereas the //'aromatic-floral'// aspects of benzyl acetate predominate in the other group." While the scent of plants of some low-lying biotopes may show the waxy and slightly metallic aspects of capric acid and lauric acid, the scent of certain small alpine types has a definite vanilla note (pronounced in the scent of [[Gymnadenia odoratissima (L.) Rich.]]). \\
[The scent of orchids: olfactory and chemical investigations., Kaiser, R., Basel 1993, 27-28 and 176-177] 

| {{:benzylacetate.jpg|benzyl acetate}} \\ benzyl acetate \\ //(sweet floral)// |{{:eugenol.jpg|eugenol}} \\ eugenol \\ //(clove-like)// | {{:cinnamylalcohol.jpg| cinnamyl alcohol}} \\ (E)-cinnamyl alcohol \\ //(sweet-balsamic)// |

"In the scent analyses, we identified 45 volatiles in G. conopsea of which three (benzyl acetate, eugenol, benzyl benzoate) were physiologically active." \\
[Floral scent emission and pollinator attraction in two species of Gymnadenia (Orchidaceae)., Huber, F.K., Kaiser, R., Sauter, W., Schiestl, F.P., Oecologia, Vol.142(4), 2005, 564-575] 

{{gymnadeniaconopsea_bfp1914.jpg?600}} \\
Perrin-Robins, I.S., Boulger, British flowering plants, vol. 1 (1914) t. 31 \\
[[http://plantillustrations.org/species.php?id_species=485037]]

{{http://www.botanische-spaziergaenge.at/Bilder/Lumix_3/P1150939.JPG}} \\
Gymnadenia conopsea © Rolf Marschner (2009),  
[[http://botanische-spaziergaenge.at/viewtopic.php?f=520&t=2984| www.botanische-spaziergaenge.at]]