Some Cypripedium acaule that grow in our woodlot. As I wrote earlier, there are high percentage of alba in that population. Actually the dark pink ones are rarer here than the white form. But the most common ones are light pink, but there is a lot of variation between the color of each plant.
Around 50% of the plants are light pink, 40 % are white and 10% are dark pink.
Light pinks :
White
Clone A (Tocarmar (Tom) : I collected pollen from clone A and B for you)
Clone A
Clone B
Clone B
Pink
Those Cyps grow mainly under 70 years old conifers stands of balsam fir, with a few red spruce and white cedar. There are a few dying white birchs.
The pH is acidic everywhere I tested it in our woodlot, even in the maple stand (4,5 to 5,5) so even though I have not tested it in the fir stand, sure it is low. Drainage is not perfect, but the Cyps always grow above the water table. Our Cyps seem to benefit from small opening in the canopy. We had a important ice storm in 1998. Some trees were broken by the ice. Many branches were broken too. In summer 1998 the flowering was quite a show. It seems to me that this plant is very shade tolerant but that it grows better in small openings. Many plants seemed to wait for more light in deep shade. We saw the same phenomenon when we cut a few trees. The plants do not thrive in the shadiest part of the forest. They bloom mainly near the paths and where we cut some trees. Some plants really thrive in the paths. We only use very small machine for harvesting wood. That is why the Cyps can live on the paths.
The understorey : Aralia nudicaulis, Clintonia borealis, Trillium undulatum, Maianthemum canadense, Dryopteris (spinulosa group and maybe D. cristata ? I must check for D. clintoniana), Trientalis borealis, Coptis, Cornus canadensis. Seedlings of Abies balsamea and Acer rubrum. A few Viburnum alnifolium.
Around 50% of the plants are light pink, 40 % are white and 10% are dark pink.
Light pinks :
White
Clone A (Tocarmar (Tom) : I collected pollen from clone A and B for you)
Clone A
Clone B
Clone B
Pink
Those Cyps grow mainly under 70 years old conifers stands of balsam fir, with a few red spruce and white cedar. There are a few dying white birchs.
The pH is acidic everywhere I tested it in our woodlot, even in the maple stand (4,5 to 5,5) so even though I have not tested it in the fir stand, sure it is low. Drainage is not perfect, but the Cyps always grow above the water table. Our Cyps seem to benefit from small opening in the canopy. We had a important ice storm in 1998. Some trees were broken by the ice. Many branches were broken too. In summer 1998 the flowering was quite a show. It seems to me that this plant is very shade tolerant but that it grows better in small openings. Many plants seemed to wait for more light in deep shade. We saw the same phenomenon when we cut a few trees. The plants do not thrive in the shadiest part of the forest. They bloom mainly near the paths and where we cut some trees. Some plants really thrive in the paths. We only use very small machine for harvesting wood. That is why the Cyps can live on the paths.
The understorey : Aralia nudicaulis, Clintonia borealis, Trillium undulatum, Maianthemum canadense, Dryopteris (spinulosa group and maybe D. cristata ? I must check for D. clintoniana), Trientalis borealis, Coptis, Cornus canadensis. Seedlings of Abies balsamea and Acer rubrum. A few Viburnum alnifolium.
