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Cypripedium - Lady Slipper Orchids

PLEASE NOTE: Fall shipping has begun. All fall orders now will be shipped in October 2015. Due to limited supply, your credit card will be charged the full amount when order is placed. This will guarantee and reserve your plants. If you do not want the guarantee, upon checkout, note that you do not want your card charged till ship date. You will be subject to us selling out if you do not reserve your plants.

The following intended to give you as much cultivation information as we presently have about the cypripediums and to communicate what we have found to work well for us. Our intent is to leave with you an understanding of these orchids, such that your growing experience will be a pleasurable one!

Your plants have arrived as bare root and they are dormant. You should plan to plant immediately either by planting directly in a garden bed or planting in a pot. When the maple sugar season starts it is time to plant. We recommend planting in a garden bed so that the plant may grow for many years without being disturbed. If you choose in pot, they should be well mulched. If necessary you may keep the plant in the refrigerator at a temperature between 36F and 40F in moss or other media but do not freeze.

Individual Growing Conditions

Pubescence our easiest to grow native yellow lip with twisted sepals and petals that vary from yellow to brown with a yellow lip. Sometimes with multiple flowers per stem. I grow mine in forest compost with 40-60% shade. Planting near the edge of the woods or near a building with mature trees can usually satisfy this requirement. The soil in which the plant grows should be kept slightly acidic in organic humus and very loose and aerated

Reginae, Showy ladyslipper. A large flower with flat white sepals and petals with a pink to red lip. Often with multiple flowers per stem. Grows naturally in fenns. Keep well watered but not standing in water requires 2 to 3 hours of direct early morning sun or late afternoon sun and be in shade dappled with sun during the rest of the day. Proper planting near the edge of the woods or near a building with mature trees can usually satisfy this requirement. The soil in which the plant grows should be kept a neutral pH (i.e. pH 6.8 - 7.5), very high in organic humus and very loose and aerated. The mix can be kept neutral indefinitely by adding powdered lime to it if needed. Powdered lime should be used only when checking pH in the late fall. Showy's will grow better in dry areas by growing them in a bog or fenn and mulching them in the winter.

Acaule the Cyp most people think of a very nice pink flower on a stem less plant. Needs acidic (4-6) low fertility soil. Can be grown in a bog but it not its preferred location. Does not bloom every year unless very happy. Needs mid afternoon shade. But too much shade will stop flowering. Not for the beginner

Candidum a rare native white lips greenish to brown sepals rarely multiple per stem; prefers full sun. Although slow to develop can form beautiful close clumps. The soil in which the plant grows should be kept slightly acidic and very high in organic humus.

Kentuckiense Our largest flower long yellow and brown twisted side with flat overhanging top petal and a light yellow lip. Flowers up to 4 x 6 in. Grows in sandy soil about 50% shade. Still learning here.

Montanum Small plants with yellow lip and dark twisted sepals. Needs a well-drained mix. With 50% shade. I am still playing with this one for good growing. Not easy

For all cyps. media in which plant is growing should be kept evenly moist yet never soaking wet in the spring . Media must be well drained with never any standing water. Try to avoid watering with hard or chlorinated water. If you must, collect rainwater or buy distilled.

After the plant has gone dormant in the fall do the following: mulch with new layer (a maximum of 2 inches) of shredded leaves and/or rotten wood shredded to a fine mulch and Dormancy normally occurs around mid-September and is characterized by plant and stem turning yellow, then brown and toppling over.

When growing in a garden fertilizer is not necessary. Just a good top dressing of organic mulch as we have already recommended will do the trick in providing the necessary plant nutrients through organic means. I use earth worm casings to supplement poor growing areas.


If you purchase seedlings 1-2 yr old plants
Know how to grow cyp seedlings

The seedlings, generally with shoots only one or two centimeters long and roots three to five centimeters, arrive sealed in plastic containers or, outside theU.S., in flasks. The seedlings in bags should simply be placed in a refrigerator until spring either in the bag or potted in pots or they can be planted in protected beds. This is especially good for 3 year seedlings. Seedlings in flasks must be removed from the flasks, rinsed in water and picked free of the nutrient agar, sealed in plastic freezer bags with a little water or dampened sphagnum in the bottom, then refrigerated until spring. The refrigeration is essential to enable the plantlets to produce leaves when the temperature rises.

After refrigeration, or for plants received in the spring, great care must be taken to carefully remove the plant from the sphagnum moss without damaging the eye. This caution is essential as a damaged eye may mean the death of the plant. But despite these difficulties I have found sphagnum to have more advantages than disadvantages.

The seedlings may either be planted in an inorganic material such as coir/perlite mixture and may be fed with very dilute fertilizer solutions during the growing season or planted in a soil mix. For most of the North American varieties a humus mix seems to work well The Asian and Montanum Cyps dislike wetness around the stems. We have been using turface; some use granite dust around the top to eliminate this problem. Presently I am using a coir mixture for the main part of my mix for the Asian growers The details of the amount of water, the intensity of lighting, and the temperature requirements vary considerably from one species to another. Cribb's book on Cyps will give you a guideline here. I am still experimenting with some of the Asian species but have good experience with the American. An instruction sheet for many of the American species is enclosed. I will try to answer any question you may have. I hope to expand the sheet to include more species in the future.

Because our seedlings are small, they require great vigilance by the grower. Our young plants are a nice snack for many a pest! Some growers have built small hardware cloth cages around their plants or put plastic berry boxes over the seedlings for protection from predators. The moisture content of the soil is critical. If the soil is too wet, the plants die from lack of oxygen, but because the roots are so short, the seedlings may die quickly if the upper few centimeters of the soil become dry. The grower must check plants daily or even more often during periods of unusually hot, dry, or wet weather. Cypripedium seedlings can be grown indoors under artificial lights. As for most orchids, growth is slow. Although precocious individuals of some species occasionally flower after one or two seasons of growth, normally three, four, or more years are required to reach flowering size. Growers of tropical orchids are used to such delay.

Seedlings still may be the best way for an experienced gardener to get plants. Most of the unusual Cyps still demand hefty prices as mature plants. A $45.00 investment today can be a $90.00 plant in just 3 to 4 years: a hefty return on your investment! Also, many of the Asian types are presently only available as seedlings.

   
Showy Lady Slipper
Description
Cypripedium Reginae commonly known as the Showy Lady Slipper is one of the largest members of the genus. This rare terrestrial orchid is also aptly named the Queen's Lady's Slipper. As the plant matures, it typically forms multiple stems of 2 to 3 feet each with 1 to 3 flowers per stem. Leaves are lime green, monocot and hairy. White sepal and petals. Flower is white with a painted fuschia (deep pink) slipper. Staminode is yellow and white with red spotting. Blooms 7-14 days from mid-June to early July. Showy Indeed! It's a beauty and one of our favorites. It will be yours too!!

USDA Growing Zones
Recommended optimal USDA zones are 3 to 6. Plants may be grown in zone 2 with extra winter mulching protection and zone 7 if the ground is kept cool and moist with adequate shading.

Soil/Media/Growing Requirements
Requires a neutral pH soil/media. They require 2 to 3 hours direct early morning or late afternoon sun and be in dappled shade/sun the remainder of the day. Roots must always be moist and never allowed to dry out. They detail what we have found to work well for us with the Cypripedium Reginae and we have grown thousands! These plants are found in nature in open well drained but moist areas, along roadsides and in open fields, and in cultivation do well in open gardens with well-drained soil. Some protection from direct sun is beneficial in the warmer climates.

This item has only a $6.50 Shipping & Handling Charge up to 25 plants ordered. This amount will be added to your order. These are 5th year transplants. They should flower within 1-2 years.

plants will ship late April/Early May.

   
Cypripedium arietinum
Ram's Head Lady Slipper
North America
H: 15-30 cm (6-12 in)
3rd year plants
Z: 3-5 pH: 5-6

Blooming: End of May to June

The smallest of the lady's slippers, this flower is striking for its pointy white pouch with red veins and white hairs, surrounded by a pair of brown sepals and petals, giving the impression of a ram's head. Light cherry fragrance. One of the rarest North American orchids.

Cypripedium species normally bloom after their 5th or 6th year (cycle) of growth. Mature plants have already bloomed or are of blooming size. This item has only a $6.50 Shipping & Handling Charge up to 25 plants ordered. This amount will be added to your order. They should flower within 1-2 years.

plants will ship late April/Early May.

   
Cypripedium guttatum (x alaskanum)
Alaska
H: 10-38 cm (4-15.5 in)
3rd year plants
Z: 2-4
Blooming: June-July

A natural hybrid between Cypripedium guttatum and C. yatabeanum. This most northern lady's slipper has an attractive pitcher-shaped pouch, white with purple spotting, prized by collectors. This is an easy one to grow and spreads quickly but requires a longer cold period (minimum 5 months under 4 C or 39 F).

Cypripedium species normally bloom after their 5th or 6th year (cycle) of growth. Mature plants have already bloomed or are of blooming size. This item has only a $6.50 Shipping & Handling Charge up to 25 plants ordered. This amount will be added to your order. They should flower within 1-2 years.

plants will ship late April/Early May.

   
Cypripedium kentuckiense
Sabot du Kentucky
Kentucky-Arkansas
H: 80 cm (32 in)
3rd year plants
Z: 7

Blooming: April-May

This is the largest of the lady's slippers with a large cream-colored pouch and maroon sepals and petals. This is C. parviflorum`s southern cousin.

Cypripedium species normally bloom after their 5th or 6th year (cycle) of growth. Mature plants have already bloomed or are of blooming size. This item has only a $6.50 Shipping & Handling Charge up to 25 plants ordered. This amount will be added to your order. They should flower within 1-2 years.

plants will ship late April/Early May.

   
Cypripedium montanum

SOLD OUT


NW North America
H : 30-35 cm (12-14 in)
Z : 3-5
3rd year plants

Blooming: May - July

A pretty stem, often multifloral, bearing delicate white slippers with long, dark, twisted petals. This is another relative of C. parviflorum, this one coming from mountainous regions.

Cypripedium species normally bloom after their 5th or 6th year (cycle) of growth. Mature plants have already bloomed or are of blooming size. This item has only a $6.50 Shipping & Handling Charge up to 25 plants ordered. This amount will be added to your order. They should flower within 1-2 years.

plants will ship late April/Early May.

   
Yellow Lady Slipper

The American Indians called this plant "kwa-ko-ri-en ra-o-ta", meaning mocassin. The rhizome is found in native pharmacology for its stimulating effect on the nervous system. The flower is fragrant with a brilliant yellow pouch and dark-brown, twisted petals.

Cypripedium species normally bloom after their 5th or 6th year (cycle) of growth. Mature plants have already bloomed or are of blooming size. Showy Indeed! It's a beauty and one of our favorites. It will be yours too!!

USDA Growing Zones
Recommended optimal USDA zones are 3 to 6. Plants may be grown in zone 2 with extra winter mulching protection and zone 7 if the ground is kept cool and moist with adequate shading.

Soil/Media/Growing Requirements
Requires a neutral pH soil/media. They require 2 to 3 hours direct early morning or late afternoon sun and be in dappled shade/sun the remainder of the day. They detail what we have found to work well for us with the Cypripedium parviflorum and we have grown thousands! These plants are found in nature in open well drained areas, along roadsides and in open fields, and in cultivation do well in open gardens with well-drained soil. Some protection from direct sun is beneficial in the warmer climates.

Our Plants .... Are 100% laboratory propagated from seed!

Cypripedium parviflorum as a species has a multi-eyebud growth habit by nature. Therefore, many of our plants are often multi-eyebud plants for which we do not charge extra. We, however, cannot guarantee multi-eyebud plants as we instead grade them by rhizome size and quality and not by number of eyebuds.

This item has only a $6.50 Shipping & Handling Charge up to 25 plants ordered. This amount will be added to your order. These are 5th year transplants. They should flower within 1-2 years.

plants will ship late April/Early May.

   
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