Between 400 and 500 rare orchids are getting a new chance in Telemark, Norway. NIBIO researchers grew elder-flowered orchids (Dactylorhiza sambucina), classed as vulnerable in the country, in the laboratory and moved them to twelve traditional hay meadows.
The species depends on semi-natural meadows maintained by traditional farming practices, which modern agriculture has pushed back. The planting is accompanied by site-specific management plans and scientific monitoring. The effort combines conservation with restoring the cultural landscape, with the aim of strengthening threatened populations or returning the orchid to sites where it has disappeared.
