- Lifespan
- Perennial, typically 5–10 years as a mature flowering plant
- Size & Weight
- 20–60 cm tall; flower spike 2–8 cm long with 20–100 individual flowers
- Habitat
- Dry grasslands, chalk and limestone slopes, calcareous meadows, and south-facing banks with well-drained soils.
- UK Distribution
- Scattered throughout southern and central England, with strongholds in the Cotswolds, Chilterns, and South Downs; absent from Scotland and northern regions; summer-flowering resident.
- Diet
- Parasitic on fungi (mycoheterotrophic); obtains nutrients through mycorrhizal associations with underground fungi rather than photosynthesis alone.
- Predators
- Deer, rabbits, and slugs may graze young shoots; fungal pathogens and soil disturbance pose significant threats.
- Mating Season
- June to August (flowering period)
- Breeding
- Wind and insect-pollinated (primarily by long-tongued bees); produces thousands of dust-like seeds dispersed by wind; no specific clutch analogue; relies on fungal symbiosis for seed germination and establishment.
- Behaviour
- A hermaphroditic perennial that forms dense spikes of pink-purple flowers arranged in a distinctive pyramidal shape. Entirely dependent on mycorrhizal fungal partners for nutrient uptake and survival. Flowers attract specialist pollinators, particularly long-tongued bees.