If you look carefully along a number of our Arboretum trails, you may be fortunate enough to see an inconspicuous orchid that blooms in mid- to late July. The leaves of the Cranefly Orchid, which develop late in the fall, are distinctive in being green on the upper surface and purple below. The leaves persist during the winter months allowing the plant to photosynthesize during the season when sunlight reaches the deciduous forest floor. In the spring, the leaves break down and are absent at the time of flowering. Tipularia discolor, the only member of its genus in North America, is found in many parts of Tennessee and is distributed from southern New England, south to Florida, and west as far as Texas.

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