Leading article: Hide and seek

Has ever a flower been so aptly named? The ghost orchid was presumed to have disappeared from these islands some 20 years ago. But now it has reappeared almost like, well, a ghost.

Or to be more precise, a specimen has been tracked down by Mark Jannink, an amateur botanist from Malvern who identified 10 possible sites in which the flower might grow in the Welsh borders and visited them regularly until he finally found what he was looking for.

Mr Jannink clearly has a rare talent for finding things. Perhaps, if he can afford to take a break from wild flowers, he might be persuaded to lend his talent to tracking down some other important national items that have gone missing of late. For starters, we suggest: prudence; the proceeds of growth; the stiff upper lip; and Jedward. He should be warned in advance, however, that some of those are likely to prove even more elusive than the ghost orchid.