Rare orchids suddenly bloomed causing half of the golf course to be closed

Hundreds of precious orchids grow at Ashton golf course, causing them to reduce the number of holes to make room for orchids to grow and seed.

Some orchids, including blue-winged orchids (Anacamptis morio) , grow on Ashton golf course when the site is closed because of Covid-19 and do not mow the grass regularly, Bristol Post reported on June 16. Bristol City Council, which runs the golf course, halves the number of holes when reopening to players.

Blue orchid orchids grow on the golf course. (Photo: Jon Rowley).

The decision to suspend the operation of nine holes of golf was made to protect flowering trees on the advice of ecologists. "This helps the flowers to the seeds, just to create an environment for biological pollination activities. We plan to open the entire 18 holes of golf on the day 15/7, when flowers have finished creating seed" , a Bristol City Council spokesman said. The council also urged people to wait patiently during this time.

"Golfers are uncomfortable. However, there are hundreds of orchids growing on the grass. Now that the flowers are gone, we still need to make sure the seeds have grown fully so we can have more next year." flowers bloom, " said a golf course manager.

Green orchid orchids are named after the green veins of the sepals. This plant blooms in May - June, pinkish purple petals. In the UK, blue orchid veins belong to a group of threatened plants. Bees often make "pollinators" for them.