pink lady slipper being pollinated

[sarracenia]

snapped these photos today of my pink lady slipper being pollinated.

 

[CopcarFC]

Cool

 

[swords]

Fantastic! Only one of my 3 pinks bloomed this year. I hope my C. reginae will bloom- it keeps getting taller.

How long have you had your pink(s)? This is my first year with them but hear that this species in particular is not very happy in cultivation longterm. I'm trying to find a happy medium by growing it in my patio shade garden in a large trough with the other two since it grows here I figure I'll just mulch my woodland troughs for winter and uncover them in spring so they get the full zone 4 winter they're used to.

 

[jimscott]

Awesome! I need that bee for my D. paradoxa!

 

[PlantAKiss]

Wow...lucky you! I wish I had some of those. They are a "holy grail" of the plant world for me. I did discover one at my parent's house and one at the park I go to last year. I want to go see if its up yet at the park. Unfortunately its right at the edge of the footpath so...I don't have much hope for its safety.

Beautiful flower and photo!

 

[herenorthere]

In 1990, I helped in a very preliminary effort to figure out what pollinates Maine's very rare ram's head ladyslippers. We sat down in the middle of one of the state's few populations at daybreak and watched insects buzz past flowers for a few hours, waiting for something to land. We left as ignorant as we arrived. I went on to other things and wonder if he ever found the answer.

 

[Finch]

WOW! WOW! stunning photos! and a cute bee! Nice job!

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

I like those guys too, but haven't aquired any yet. I want to start a collection of Cyps species. Very nice plant you have there, and it is interesting to se how these plants have evolved to get certain insects to pollinate them.

 

[sarracenia]

This will be my 3rd year growing it. I hate to admit it, but my wife's grandma dug it up and gave it to me. I'm ethically opposed to such practices, but she is around 80 yrs old and a sweet lady and was just trying to do a nice gesture. I certainly didn't ask for it. I also certainly didn't expect it to live. I stuck it in a pot with some sarracenia and hoped for the best and it hasn't disappointed. Soil mix is sphagnum peat with about 20% perlite. It is slowly spreading too. Started with 1 stem the first year, 2 stems/2 blooms last year, and 2 blooms/5 stems this year. It bloomed in a greenhouse last year, so there was no chance of pollination. We'll see what happens this year, being outside. It will be interesting to see if the seeds (if you can call them that) will germinate. I'll probably scatter them around all my plants and just let nature take its course. I have read that the pinks are probably the easiest to grow of the native Cyps. anyway, at this point, it seems pretty happy where it's at. Of course, now I'm too scared to uproot the Sarracenia that are in the pot with it, despite a pressing need to divide them, as they are cramming the edges of the large pot they're in. Also, there's a wild iris that my wife's grandma dug up at the same time that's in there (you can see the leaves in the photo), and it too is spreading like wildfire.

 

[swords]

Nice to know yours has done well! Mine are originally from the wild as well however purchased from a nursery permitted by the state of MN to salvage rare wildflowers from road construction and urban sprawl. Wood's End Nursery if anyone would like to know.
Here's my blooming stalk and my still growing reginae:

And here's a "medicine"  that should make all plant lovers SICK:

<a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/LADYS-SLIPPER-RHIZOME-Cypripedium-Pubescens-LIQ-3-5_W0QQitemZ5654774712QQcategoryZ19260QQs
sPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem" target="_blank">Lady Slipper Rhizome</a>

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

It sure makes me SICK!! These things are endangered and they are going to cut the stuff up for oils. Argggg.

Any who those are great guys! sarracenia I know you said you were going to let nature take its course, but I think you will have better luck sending the seeds to Troy Meyers at Meyers conservatory for flasking. You will get a flask back in return for sending the seeds. All you do is pay for shipping. Since its the only one in the area I would assume it would be self pollinated. I duno if Troy does it Cyps or not, but I do know Atlanta botanical gardens does. Many other gardens might as well.

You guys have gotten me interested enough to look for some online!

 

[glider14]

hey nice plants every one. what is the hardiest commercially availiable orchid out there? and what condidtions can it stand?
alex

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

Blatilla (The hardy Chinese orchid) It sometimes can be found in the bulb section of many chain stores. I haven't seen it yet, but you treat it just like bulbs and grow it in dirt. I got a few bulbs fro a friend in Cali. Only have 4 or 5 coming up from what he sent, but they will devide and the flowers look like a lavander Cattleya almost. There is white and 2 other colors. Striata(sp) I think is the species. One of my bulb mags had 4 different variations in it, but they were a little high. Those would be the easiest hardy orchid I know of at the momment. Cyps seem easy, but I hear they need the propper conditions and can be boogers.

 

[herenorthere]

Here's an article about Bletillas - http://drriley.mypcr.com/bletilla/.

I'll probably put a community pot of Bletilla striata 'Alba' seedlings (spontaneous pollination with non-Albas nearby) in the NASC auction.  They're from my plants, via Troy Meyers, and I potted them last October.  The leaves range from 1" up to maybe 6" long.

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

Cool cool.  This is the first time I have grown them.  I would like to get some Albas as well.  There are two other varients out there too.  I will have to find my cataloge. Thanks for the Article Bruce that was excelent!

 

[glider14]

heres one that is pretty hardy but i dont know about availability...plus its neat looking! its called Cypripedium Kentuckiense(the Kentucky Slipper Orchid).

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

Whats the ease of growing that one Glider? I plan on looking for as many Cyps I can find, but have just always heard they can be picky. Blatilla is basicly just like growing anything else in the yard.

 

[swords]

Remember, most (but not all) Cypripediums that you find for sale are poached unless the person digging it up has a permit from their state's Wildlife Dept. to be doing so. Which in Minnesota necessitates that they grow the "rescued" plants at their state inspected facilities for at least one calendar year from date of acquisition. Or they specifically state that they're artificially propagated. Especially those ones going at great prices online are "iffy". If you do not have receipts from accredited nurseries for these orchids you could have a mess of fines & trouble on your hands.

I've got a story for you from last summer. I was at my dads and we were watching one of our local news channels trying to find out what the weather would be doing the next day and there was one of those cheesy "human interest stories" about peoples gardens. One guy was showing the news reporter around and saying "Every year we go up to the boundry waters canoe area and I bring home some plants to remember our trip by" and as he's saying this the camera pans over a huge bed of blooming Showy Lady Slippers or Cypripedium reginae (our state flower). I went wild about the illegality of it and so we waited until the news reran the story an hour later and that section of the interview was cut out of the second airing. Aparently someone called the station...

Check out The Genus Cypripedium by Phillip Cribb if you want a great monograph on them but there's not much/any cultivation info. Growing Hardy Orchids by John Tullock is awesome and shoud be in your botanical library if you want to grow these plants. Get both from Timber Press. I'd check amazon first though-it's got those used books available...

I want some of the awesome Chinese Cypripedium species but I haven't been able to find a source.

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

Have you tried Oak hill orchids? There are some midwest nurseries that seed progete the cyps. I don't know if they do the chinese ones or not. You can get pinks easy though, and the yellows and brown ones. Sorry I don't know much about these guys yet. Atlanta botanical gardens is doing alot of seed propogation of alot of Cyps. I don't remember the species yet. Plus if you own the property that these plants are on you can legaly dig them up and move them. I was going to be getting some from a friend, off his property. Till he ran into some issues, and I haven't heard much from him lately.

 

[glider14]

well im going to Lowe's today and im first going to see if they have any CPs then im going to look at the bulbs to see if i have any luck.
alex