Cypripedium macranthos f. rebunense

[annica.jarvela]

Are the large clumps formed by generative propagation or by vegetative propagation?
This is a big difference in relation to the normal life expectancy of this species.

Hi Berthold, Cypripediums as many other orchids form big clumps vegetatively. One plant, when it thrives, slowly or faster form several new buds or kids, instead of just one. So called colonies are usually formed by several separate plants that have grown (partly) from seeds.
Epipactis can form big colonies starting just from one plant. They grow usually long underground stolons and the new shoots can be quite far apart from each other.

As you know, many berries need a male plant and a female plant to grow berries.
E.g with cloudberry on some marshes are full of plants, but no berries. That's be cause they have been grown just vegetatively and are just female or male plants.

 

[Berthold]

So called colonies are usually formed by several separate plants that have grown (partly) from seeds.

That is the point, Annica.
Many orchids are self-sterile. This means that pollen from another plant with a different genetic basis is needed for fertilization.
Therefore, long-lived colonies cannot consist of plants from a single clone.
My rebunense was self-sterile also and I could not get pollen from another plant for pollination. For this reason, the culture time for me was limited to the life expectancy of an individual of rebunense, hence my interest in the life expectancy of this species.

 

[annica.jarvela]

That is the point, Annica.
Many orchids are self-sterile. This means that pollen from another plant with a different genetic basis is needed for fertilization.
Therefore, long-lived colonies cannot consist of plants from a single clone.
My rebunense was self-sterile also and I could not get pollen from another plant for pollination. For this reason, the culture time for me was limited to the life expectancy of an individual of rebunense, hence my interest in the life expectancy of this species.

Yes, maybe. If you are sure that the reason is not caused by a prolonged drought, or got eaten by a mole, or that moles have been digging their holes so that roots are left dangling in the air. Or rotted away etc. I think they should live quite a long time, but I am not sure.
I have grown a lot of different plants, and some really are short lived. But some plants that are said to be short lived (not sure how long time they mean), I have had the same plants many years, like ten or more. Some continue at the same place with new plants that have grown from seed. Then I have a Campanula barbata, that is biennial or short lived perennial. It has grown exactly at the same place almost 20 years. It always grows new side rosettes after flowering or before. Every Spring I go to look with fear, that is it still there. So far so good. Now when I told you, it probably will disappear untill next year.
If I could remember the name of the great grower of Cypripediums, German I think. He would probably know how long Cypripediums should live. Frosch???

 

[Berthold]

If I could remember the name of the great grower of Cypripediums, German I think. He would probably know how long Cypripediums should live. Frosch???

Annica, we knew each other. We had a lot of Discussions . The passion of Werner Frosch was hybrids, I'm only interested in pure wild species.

 

[annica.jarvela]

Annica, we knew each other. We had a lot of Discussions . The passion of Werner Frosch was hybrids, I'm only interested in pure wild species.

Oh you knew him. Good. But to grow hybrids you must grow wild sp. too. Have to look in to it, if I find anything.

 

[Berthold]

Oh you knew him. Good. But to grow hybrids you must grow wild sp. too. Have to look in to it, if I find anything.

Annica, Werner Frosch had a different intention. He wanted to produce robust garden Cypripedium for selling.
Hybrids are more robust than wild species normally and he selected robust individuals.
Some wild species are extremely dependent of mycorrhiza fungi in germination as well as in surviving. The extreme species in this case is Cypripedium subtropicum and the middle American species.

 

[annica.jarvela]

Annica, Werner Frosch had a different intention. He wanted to produce robust garden Cypripedium for selling.
Hybrids are more robust than wild species normally and he selected robust individuals.
Some wild species are extremely dependent of mycorrhiza fungi in germination as well as in surviving. The extreme species in this case is Cypripedium subtropicum and the middle American species.

All wild so called Hardy Orchids are dependable of right sort of mycorrhizal fungi. It's also stressed out that they are very sensitive to fertilizers as do some other plants, like Primula scandinavica (don't know why it's called scandinavica, because it grows only at some places in Norway), P. nutans (Finland, where it's called P. nutans ssp finmarchica var. jokelae, and Sweden), and P. stricta which grows in Lappland.

Btw. It happened to me one year a long time ago that my Cypripedium calceolus, which was already a bigger clump, that it didn't show itself. I thought it had died, but I didn't dig there or anything, just thought how sad that it died. Next year it grew again like nothing had happened. It's unusual to Cypripediums, usually they have died if they don't show themselves, but it is possible. It has happened to some other Cyp. as well.