Help with creating an area to grow Cypripedium

[Eric Muehlbauer]

I don't think you'd need CITES for C. arietinum, as its a US species...then again, I don't know of any US dealers who sell it, even collected. Unless your suppliers are Canadian....The Orchid Digest focuses on all orchids...species, hybrids, epiphytes, terrestrials....and (unlike some other Orchid periodical we know) pays due attention to slipper orchids. Its online- type in Orchid Digest on Google and you will find issues online. Take care, Eric

 

[TheLorax]

The small cottage nursery that has the plants is in the UK. I'd really like to order them for this fall but my little voice says wait until spring. When do you think it would be best to ask for them to be shipped?

http://www.fws.gov/permits/faqs/FaqNOPQ.shtml
http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/isdb/CITES...dium&Species=arietinum&Country=&tabname=names

I'll subscribe to the Orchid Digest. I really enyoy the few jewell orchids I have. I'm also interested in several other hardy native terrestrials. Thanks so much for mentioning that publication pays due attention to slippers.

 

[Eric Muehlbauer]

I've always found it better to plant Cyp's in the fall. Ordering from UK sounds like a real hassle, and a major expense. Try exhausting the US suppliers first...try Roberts Flower supply http://www.orchidmix.com/cyps.htm, he doesn't have arietinum on his list now, but if you contact him he may have or know of sources. As I mentioned in the acaule thread, try Carson Whitlow http://www.c-we.com/cyp.haven/..he doesn't have them, but may know of sources. Take care, Eric

 

[TheLorax]

Thank you, the man from the UK has become a personal friend over the years so I've got to buy from him and I am aware it is a major expense.

Your link doesn't work to CypHaven. I'll go google them. The other source had a plant somebody else was looking for which was great. I'll have to go back and take a closer look at everything at that site too. So many goodies.

 

[TheLorax]

OK, here's the link to CypHaven, must go back and poke around there.
http://www.c-we.com/cyp.haven/

Thanks for the names of those nurseries!

 

[TheLorax]

To goldenrose and Grandma M-

I understand you two have only talked on the phone but have never met in person so you are both very interested in getting together and visiting Ackers. I'm still very much interested in meeting the two of you as well as seeing what Ackers has to offer. If possible, may we button down a date to visit that nursery? My girlfriend's Mom fell and broke her hip earlier this year. Her Dad is in his early 90's and has asked if she could fly back down to help him for a few weeks. Her Mom is 87 or maybe it was 88 years old so the fall has been hard on the whole family. She'd like to try to purchase advance tickets but wants to plan flying to Florida around this visit to Ackers.

 

[Rick]

Hi, first post. Really sorry my first post is in the wanted forum but I would like (want) help with site preparation to attempt to grow several types of cyps.

I realize this is a strange want request however I suspect Cypripedium kentuckiense, C. reginae, and C. arietinum are not all that easy to grow. I'd like to purchase a few next year but would need to make sure I select the most appropriate area on my property to try my hand at growing them. I'd also like to cover the other bases of meeting their cultural requirements before making the investment in these species. I really hate losing plants due to ignorance.

Some of the plants for sale that I have my eye on are in pots while others are in vitro which makes me somewhat nervous. I would also want some tips on starting in vitro cyps.

My zone is 5. I have a quality oak hickory savannah on my property as well as several degraded wetlands that I will begin to clean up in the next few years and a small but quality upland deciduous forest area also present. We have intense freeze/thaw cycling where I live and garden.

Any suggested reading materials would also be appreciated. I recently purchased one publication but would prefer referrals of books from people who already grow the plants I want to grow.

Getting into this post late so this might be redundant, but have you got a copy of John Tullock's book Growing Hardy Orchids? It has detailed intructions for making beds for Cyps.

 

[TheLorax]

Yes, I ordered his book as well as a book by Keenan titled "Wild Orchids Across North America". I ordered them a few days ago. I do not have them yet. Amazon sends from a bunch of different sellers so the books could appear this coming week or not for a few weeks. Depends on the seller.

I found books by Cribb but I didn't order them because they were too expensive.

 

[goldenrose]

Do you belong to the botanic gardens, or know somebody that does? They may have books in their library.

 

[TheLorax]

Yes, I am a member of one botanic garden. I can check the library at Northeastern University and I've got it on my list of things to do when I go to the Chicago Botanic Gardens sometime in September. The other possibility is a quick stop in to the Rotary Gardens is Janesville when we go up to Ackers and possibly The Morton Arboretum. The problem is the distance to these places. All are around an hour away or more from where I live and with kids and all, I can't just pick up and leave to get lost in a library. I've had good experiences getting suggestions from people who grow what I'm interested in so I generally try my best to buy what they suggest as opposed to physically going to a library and trying to make a selection.

 

[Rick]

Yes, I ordered his book as well as a book by Keenan titled "Wild Orchids Across North America". I ordered them a few days ago. I do not have them yet. Amazon sends from a bunch of different sellers so the books could appear this coming week or not for a few weeks. Depends on the seller.

I found books by Cribb but I didn't order them because they were too expensive.

Good. John gave a talk to our society in TN. He is a proficient grower of native orchids in NE TN (which generally is allot cooler than here in Nashville.

 

[TheLorax]

OK, I guess I feel a little bit better about not being able to buy two of Cribb's books for a total of around $500

The other two I ordered should suit me fine for now.

 

[TheLorax]

I doubt this will come as a shock to any of you but I broke down and ordered Cribb's book. The pages parvi sent me were wonderful and I figured I might as well bite the bullet and order the book before the price goes up any higher.

goldenrose and Grandma M- I understand there were two possible weekends to go to Ackers but one wasn't good for goldenrose. Which weekend are we shooting for? I'm excited about this.

And goldenrose, what was that orchid deal you were talking about and what weekend was that? I think you said you were able to go on Sunday?

 

[goldenrose]

Oct.11,12,13 was an option but Chuck is not available.
Sept.21/22 was another option but I'm not available.
The Chicagoland Orchid Fest is Sept.21,22,23. I'm available on SUNDAY!
Marilyn is working on other dates, it will happen!

 

[TheLorax]

Both of those weekends would have been fine for me but I would so hate getting all dressed up for the sandbox only to find I had no playmates... and worse yet... no personal shoppers.

Please try not to let it happen in the months where we get snow. I drive like crapola and would probably end up in a snow bank or something. I won't even take the kids skiing if it is snowing and I know how to get there. Ackers is about a 2.5 hour drive for me and I won't know where I am going which poses another problem since I have a tendency of getting lost in a paper bag. We refer to it as the "scernic routes" around here.

I think it's going to be hard enough getting a date for the three of us. Maybe we should take a close look at those October dates again and have a ladies day out. Sorry Chuck if you are a member here. I'm not trying to exclude you from the reindeer games... just trying to get a plant fix now that I have a basic idea of which slippers will grow in lower levels of light... I'm beginning to suffer withdrawal symptoms of not being able to get up to that Ackers. Nothing worse than a middle aged woman with the DTs.

 

[TheLorax]

Oh oh oh, Here's a link to that Chicagoland Orchid Fest for anyone interested-
http://www.chicagolandorchidfestival.com/

There's a clickable map that can be printed.

 

[TheLorax]

Just a little update on the area I created to grow the four acaule. Here's a photo of the raised bed. I've added a surround and connected this area to other areas in the woods via a stepping stone path. I'll be purchasing a couple hundred plugs of native acid loving ground covers to plant around it right after I hand pull all of the undesirable seedlings in the immediate area. There was a spent bloom on one of the plants I received. It is still there but has dropped down toward the medium. I have no idea what will come of that. I left the seed alone.

Oops, wrong thread. This was supposed to go into the one where I showed the actual work it took to create this. Oops.

 

[fundulopanchax]

Cribb's book is great. It is a shame it is out of print since only a couple of years ago it sold for less than $100. You will be happy to know that he is working on a revision, there have been lots of changes in the understanding of taxonomy and culture of these species since it was first printed in 1997. Definitely a must-have for Cyp people!

Ron

 

[fundulopanchax]

Hello, Lorax,

I am very late in responding about your Cyp acaule questions. I have raised a number of seedling to one year from local seed. These have been distributed to a number of Cyp enthusiasts around here and all of us have simply planted them directly under white pine in thick pine duff. The amazing thing is that they have thrived and grown quite well for everyone, even without much in the way of care. Certainly if we tried that with any other species they would have been dead within days. Usually Cyp seedlings have to be babied for two-three years before being planted outside.

I think it is important to note that many Cyp acaule grow naturally in the area. I have some wild specimens (the parents of these seedlings) growing a few hundred feet away and the others who have received them all have Cyp acaule growing in the general area if not on their property. I will dig out some photos I took a few weeks ago.

Ron

 

[TheLorax]

Hi fundulopanchax, I bought Cribb's book. I needed it. The best price I could find was right around $300. Oh well, I guess that means the revision will come out in the next few months and will sell for only $50. I must admit that parvi sent me photos of pages in the book and after I got a taste, I knew that was one book I wanted to be able to have as a reference. He is a wonderful author so I bought his book on Paphs too.

I'm really glad you are posting here. I'd love to learn from you. I really struggled doing my best to create an area in which to grow the acaule I was given.

I'm sort of glad I made a mistake and posted here though because you replied. I'll get you the link to the other thread because I'd like you to take a look and see what you think. I did my best. This raised bed is here where I live year round. That will be my little acaule experimental area. I have no desire to grow any more down here. It's far too difficult trying to meet their cultural requirements.

I have another property up north that has two species of Cypripedium on it and you just described the area in which some are growing perfectly. I'm not in a position to add any photos right now but I will be next spring. It's my intent to get my butt up there the third week of May when all of the Cyps are generally in bloom.

I'd love to see the photos you took of the area a few weeks ago. Thank you for offering to share them.

editing to add the link to the actual acaule start to finish thread-
http://www.slippertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4647