Cephalanthera damasonium was first described from France in 1768 and the name “damasonium” was first penned by Plinny and refers to an unidentified plant. Although the common name of this species is the Common White Helleborine, its flowers are usually of a pale cream coloration.

Cephalanthera damasonium is found throughout temperate sub-Mediterranean Eurasia. The species is widespread but rarely abundant. This species is found from sea level to 1,800 m altitude. It favors shade or semi shade and although it will tolerate mildly acidic soils, it is largely a plant of calcareous substrates and is at its most common both within and on the margins of chalk beechwoods. The trend of the population remains unknown.

Cephalanthera damasonium is typically found in beech woods where it can occur in considerable numbers, in woodland on chalk or limestone with little ground cover, rarely present in grassland, pinewoods and occasionally found on open down land. It grows in calcareous and rarely slightly acid soils always in shade. It flowers from early May to end of June. Most flowers of Cephalanthera damasonium are efficiently self-pollinated but pollination by the female solitary bee Andrena florea has also been recorded.

Cephalantera damasonium can often be mistaken for Cephalantera longifolia, although as its name suggests, the latter has much longer, sword like leaves. The two species share similar habitat requirements and where they grow close to one another, hybridization can occur and intermediates are not uncommon.

This species is one of the first woodland orchids to colonise suitable new plantations and these colonisers thrive in the open conditions that pertain before the forest canopy closes over. In these situations it is quite possible to find sturdy stands of up to fifteen stems in a single clump. It is equally true that these clumps flourish again when woodland is thinned out and we have seen examples that have persisted quite happily where overhead cover has been removed altogether.