Selection of books and guides on orchids from France and Europe.
Below you will find a selection of books and guides related to orchids. For each book, the main data are mentioned as well as the availability (without guarantee) from booksellers or from the publisher. The books presented are recent and can be easily found new or used. Only the links to the publisher are activated when the book is still available on its site.
France guides
Orchids from France, Belgium and Luxembourg.
(Collective of authors under the aegis of the French Orchid Society)
Biotope Editions . 500 pages.
17x24 format and weight not very compatible (1500 g) as a field guide.
Published 2005, second edition.
Publisher price €45. Ean code 9782914817110The best book on French Orchids: presents each species with the identification keys. The iconographic base remains summary (2 to 3 views) and will be the only notable flaw of this guide. The introductory part of almost 150 pages is without a doubt the best documented of the current guides and is almost worth buying the book on its own. A distribution map by department and criterion/color (Common, localized, rare, disappeared, absent) will prove very useful for directing your research.
Random distribution, publisher break. Available on the FFO website.
New version coming in 2025... in principle.
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Guide to orchids in France, Switzerland and the Benelux.
(Pierre Delforge)
Editions Delachaux and Niestlé . 350 pages.
13x20 format, almost practical as a field guide. Weight 800 g.
Published in 2021, 3rd revised and expanded edition.
Publisher price €29.90. Ean code 9782603027820An introductory part of about thirty pages. A few identification keys embellish this book which suffers from insufficient iconography (2 views per species most often). The descriptive part, although very useful, could be more complete if the author limited the supporting elements of nomenclature or taxonomy which are otherwise subjects of discord with regard to him and which sometimes take up too much of the pagination. The distribution maps are intended to be very precise but the scale proposed does not allow to locate a place sought on these maps and even less to validate the certain, probable or uncertain presence of a species via its geographical presence. This apparent precision is therefore not of great help for the determination of a taxon. Its size and weight (800 g all the same...) allow you to take it with you, but taking it out of your bag to identify an orchid in the field seems time-consuming and often doomed to failure. It is better to photograph as much as possible the orchid encountered (entire plant, flower from several angles) and look at all this calmly on your return. Failure to respect the current (official) nomenclature could waste the neophyte's time. The strong points lie in the quality of the descriptions and, even with the reservations expressed, the considerable scientific background of the work.
Available
Petits formats et petits prix mais vont dans la poche ou le sac à dos !
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Guide to common orchids of France by F Jouandoudet (Editions Sud-ouest) 60 p.
35 species, so probably not enough, but it can be a start. Description and cartography are nevertheless strong points of this mini guide that you can easily take with you.
Random availability out of stock publisher.
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Guide to the orchids of France . Find and recognize them. (Editions Sud-ouest). 116 p. €8.50. Same author and same publisher for a more erudite book: 57 species described, still presence maps and a proposal of 32 botanical itineraries. To be preferred to the previous one given the low price.
Random availability out of stock publisher.
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Wild orchids
(Editions Debaisieux) 132 p.
14 €. EAN code 9782913381841. 70 species described and illustrated with one to three photos. Cartography. Format and weight compatible to take on a walk. Do not trust the stickers (In Aveyron, or Tarn etc..., it is always the same work).
Random availability through local distributors (newsagents, supermarkets).
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Guide to orchids in France by F Dusak, P Lebas, P Pernot ( Editions Belin ) 224 p. Format 11x21. €16.95.
Ean code 9782701146812.
An almost exhaustive review of native orchids. The perfect guide to get started and take on a walk. Descriptions, flowering dates, identification tips and distribution maps or, failing that, indication of the regions of presence.
Available. Reissued work with new cover
Les ouvrages coup de coeur !
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Guide to wild orchids of France . Life size.
(Rémy Souche) Editions Les créations du Pélican/Vilo. 340 pages. Format 23x31. Paperback. Published in 2004. Publisher price €47. EAN code 9782719106426.
This is probably not the best organized book for species identification (entries in the book are by the French vernacular name) but everything is there nevertheless and sometimes in large format: descriptions, quite numerous photos, presence by region thanks to maps. It can also be criticized for not respecting the nomenclature for certain species.
Rémy Souche is sometimes more passionate than scientific, but as an erudite botanist, he gives us a superb work full of information, particularly on the history of ancient orchidology.
Hard to find new but available second-hand.
Les guides France régionaux
Discovering the wild orchids of Rhône-Alpes . 2nd edition
Collective of authors. Paperback. €30. Format 17x24.EAN code: 9782366622003
Biotope EditionsA book that combines all the qualities that one can expect: description of species, distribution maps and even discovery routes via a separate booklet. The only criticism that can be made concerns the iconography which is a little limited to 2 or 3 views per species.
Available.
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Discovering Orchids in Languedoc and Catalan country.
Collective of authors. Paperback. €30. 370 pages, 17x24 format.
EAN code: 9782366622225
Biotope EditionsA work that combines all the qualities that one can expect: description of species, identification keys, distribution maps and even 22 discovery routes. The only criticism that one can make concerns the iconography a little limited to 2 or 3 views per species.
Available.
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Discovering the Orchids of Alsace and Lorraine.
Collective of authors. Paperback. €30. 380 pages, 17x24 format.
EAN code: 9782366621716
Biotope EditionsA book that combines all the qualities that one can expect: description of species, identification keys, distribution maps and even 18 discovery routes. The number of species presented being less numerous than in the other regional guides at Biotope, a larger place is devoted to iconography.
Available.
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Wild orchids of Ile de France.
François Dusak and Pascal Pernot. Paperback. €30. 210 pages, 17x24 format.
EAN code: 9782951037946
Biotope EditionsThe Ile de France is probably not the most prolific region in France in terms of orchid species, but one is surprised when reading the book to note that despite the galloping urbanization, pockets of nature shelter many unexpected species. The scientific part is pleasantly developed and the species are presented with a description, distribution map and 3 to 4 views per taxon.
Not available in bookstores but available at the FFO boutique
Guides to European orchids
Discovery guide to European & Mediterranean Orchids (Kuhn R, Pedersen H & Cribb Ph)
Editions Biotope . 430 pages. Paperback. EAN code: 9782366622461.
16x24 format and weight not very compatible (1100 g) for a field guide. Publication 1st half of 2020 in French version, original version 2019. NB: New edition in English 2024 by another publisher.
Publisher price €39. Ean code 9782366622461
Superb work by a collective of authors. The edition presents 300 species with 2000 illustrations, which makes it the reference work currently for visual identifications. The respect of the nomenclature currently in force makes it a solid basis for naming correctly each species. Since all French species are represented, it can also be used for the national orchid flora. The introductory part and generalities on orchids (30 pages) will however be insufficient for a complete knowledge of this floral family. The cards distribution taking into account the scale treated remain summary but can prove useful. The ultra-optimized layout does not make it a pleasant work at first but its qualities are in the informative richness.
Available
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Orchids of Europe, North Africa and the Near East . (Delforge P)
Editions Delachaux et Niestlé . 540 pages. 14.5x20 format and very limited weight (1100 g) for a field guide. Published in 2016, 4th revised and expanded edition. Publisher's price €39
Ean code 9782603024072Long a reference work due to its exhaustiveness on species: more than 600! The author unfortunately adopts certain personal biases by multiplying their number precisely, which will not make the task easy for neophytes. Last downside since the iconographic base is only 2 to 3 views per species. The introductory part of less than 30 pages will only give bases for the knowledge of orchids but keys of determination inside the edition will usefully complete this first part. No distribution maps but only the indication of the country, which turns out to be clearly insufficient: the presence by country of a species will be of little use to help with the determination.
Available.
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Orchidées d'Europe, d'Afrique du Nord et du moyen-orient. (Carel Kreutz)
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En anglais
1200 pages. Format 18x25. Poids 3 kg. Parution 2024 . Auto-édition. Px éditeur 50 €
Code ean 9789083141121-
Cet ouvrage recense pas moins de 950 espèces et 125 variétés ! Belle mise en page avec une présentation claire et aérée et une iconographie de qualité comme pour les autres ouvrages de Kreutz. On trouvera les informations descriptives, de présence géographique, de période de floraison ou d'altitude. Les taxons apparaissent au rang d'espèce uniquement, les sous-espèces sont élevées au rang supérieur. En marge est précisé le rattachement de l'espèce à son groupes (ex O forestieri dans le groupe Fuscae)
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Au chapitre des points négatifs, il faudra noter l'absence de cartes de présence (mais les informations pays sont fournies) et l'index de fin d'ouvrage très sommaire : uniquement basé sur les noms scientifiques, le tri se fait en fonction d'une nouvelle nomenclature avec des genres qui ne font pas toujours l'unanimité au sein de la communauté orchidophile (Odontorchis, herorchis, vermeulenia...). Il faut donc savoir préalablement à quel genre appartient l'espèce pour y accéder dans l'index des 1080 taxons.
Disponible à la boutique des éditions Biotope ou sur Amazon.
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Orchids of Europe by country.
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Orchid of Italy. Guide to spontaneous orchids. Third edition. In Italian
Collective of authors under the aegis of Giros (Gruppo italiano per la ricerca sulle Orchidee Spontanee)
Publisher Ilcastelloeditore. €35. Paperback. Format 17x24. 480 pages.
EAN code: 9788827604472267 taxa presented after a reduced introduction compared to the previous edition. The book presents above all the species with a distribution map, the flowering periods, the description of use and according to the species, from 2 to 10 photos.
Available locally or on Amazon.it
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Atlas of the Greek orchids. 2 volumes. in English
Spyros Tsiftsis. Zissis Antonopoulos.
Mediterraneo editions . €140. Hardcover. 1000 pages. 15x21 format.
2 complete works, superbly done on the orchids of Greece. The descriptions are basic but the iconography is rich. There are distribution maps as well as flowering periods. The price is high and it is still better to order it from the publisher but there are few works of this quality on the whole of the Greek islands.
Available.
Additional works to find out more.
Orchids of Europe. Flowers and pollination.
Accessible scientific work and wealth of knowledge on orchid pollination and floral parts.
The genres are discussed without detailing each species, so it will not be a tool for identifying or having a complete overview of the species.
The book is full of photos and sketches as well as statistical tables on pollinators in particular.
Maybe not essential but fascinating nonetheless.
450 pages. Hardcover, 24x30 format.
Biotope Editions . 65 € EAN code: 9782366621778
Available
Atlas of orchids of France.
An almost essential complement to the Guide to Orchids of France published by Biotope above, you will find this book from the same publisher, which maps out fairly precisely on a map of France the possible meeting places of our national orchids: description of the biotopes for each species and presence maps.
400 pages. Hardcover, 21x30 format.
Editions Biotope . €40 (€20 from the publisher)
EAN code: 9782914817622
Available.
Italian Ophrys.
Rémy Souche, Rolando Romolini and watercolors by Lorenzo Dotti.
Self-published 2012. €65 + €15 postage. 580 pages. 23x23 format. Hardcover.
Ean code 9782918075028.
The book is bilingual French/Italian. A richly illustrated panorama with numerous views by species allows to grasp all the richness of Italian Ophrys. The introduction is as always with R Souche (and R Romolini) erudite with numerous historical entries. Some plates reproducing watercolors by Lorenzo Dotti give another point of view on orchids. Magnificent!
Available from the author Rémy Souche, ophrysdefrance@orange.fr
7 Route des Cévennes 34380 Saint-Martin-de-Londres 06 20 30 35 27
Ophrys of France. (and Catalonia)
Rémy Souche. Watercolors by Marianne Fabre.
Self-published 2021. €65 + €15 postage. 600 pages. 23x23 format. Hardcover.
Ean code 9782918075042.
Another reference for the knowledge of orchids of the Mediterranean basin. The book begins with a broad and erudite historical introduction and presents the species of French Ophrys with numerous photographic illustrations. You will also find superb watercolors by the Aveyron artist Marianne Fabre. Well presented, complete, a reference work!
Please note that a booklet of 74 reproductions of watercolors is also available. EAN code 9782918075059 at the price of €75 + €10 postage. 23x23 format. Printed on tintoretto support (250 gr structured paper to highlight the works).
Available from the author Rémy Souche, ophrysdefrance@orange.fr
7 Route des Cévennes 34380 Saint-Martin-de-Londres
06 20 30 35 27
Ophrys hybrids from the western Mediterranean basin. Remy Souche
Self-published 2008. 290 pages. Paperback. Format 17x23. Price €33.50 postage included.
The book is the most complete and dedicated to Ophrys hybrids and contrary to what its name indicates goes beyond the Mediterranean rim without claiming to be exhaustive of course. 1 photo per hybrid but these being unique, impossible to embrace everything.
The guide begins with a "wall" of images that allows for quick identification of the hybrids that are discussed further inside the book. Well done on the author's part, his other books use the same handy trick!
Available on the FFO website.
Available from the author Rémy Souche, ophrysdefrance@orange.fr
7 Route des Cévennes 34380 Saint-Martin-de-Londres 06 20 30 35 27
Works with an artistic vocation.
