The genus name Spiranthes comes from the Greek words "speira"
meaning spiral and "anthos" meaning flower, and refers to the spiral
arrangement of flowers. Chinese Lady's-Tresses is an orchid found in the
Himalayas and in many countries from Asia to Australia. It is a medium
sized, cool to hot growing terrestrial orchid found on roadsides, grassy
areas, open forests, at elevations of 100-2000 m. The plant has
cylindrical, velvety roots, and a basal rosette of a few oblong-elliptic
to linear-lanceshaped, pointed glossy dark green leaves. Flowers are borne
on an erect, slender, up to 25 cm long many flowered spike. The spreading
flowers twist around in a spiral with 2 to 3 distant, glandular-hairy
sheaths and lanceshaped, long-pointed, glandular-hairy floral bracts.
Flowers are rose to rose-purple, rarely whitish, fragrant. Sepals are
lanceshaped, up to 5 mm long, the dorsal forming a tube with the narrower
petals and lip. Flowering: May-September.