Help with creating an area to grow Cypripedium

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TheLorax

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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.
 
WELCOME TO THE FORUM! I will be no help to you with cyps. I live in N.E.IL as well Spring Grove - where are you? Rose
 
Hi goldenrose, I'm way east of you by Lk Michigan. Have you ever been down to Oak Hill Gardens in Dundee IL? Incredibly well grown orchids and reasonably priced but most importantly- pest free. I love that nursery. A friend of mine flew in from CA and then another friend drove in from OH and the three of us "visited" and we were lost in there for ohhhhh... about 6 hours this past spring. When we walked through the front door, we all went three different directions only crossing paths a few times while we shopped. We finally surfaced. I came out with a few jewel orchids and one or two mottled leafed paphs and I'm sure some other orchids jumped into my arms but I don't recall which ones off hand. It was a good day.

Hi Heather, would you please move this thread to the Cyp Forum for me. I started reading other threads in here and I screwed up and started this in a totally wrong area. I think I know where I want to buy my cyps from already. I'm not ready to buy them yet but I will probably go back to PlanTek once I've figured out how to grow them. I wanted help with growing them and wasn't looking to trade for them. Oops.
 
I know it well - I'm usually down at Oak Hill Gardens every 4-6 weeks!
 
Every 4-6 weeks? Oh my word, I'd be a penniless pauper. Not that that's bad or anything but I'm thinking once a year to Oak Hill is about all I can afford. I have no self control when it comes to plants. I am weak, very weak.

Say, you don't by any chance know of any other orchid sources any where around us locally that are in Oak Hill's league or close do you? Someone said there was a small nursery somewhere up north of Milwaukee that would be worth visiting however I have been wracking my brain to remember the name of that nursery and can't for the life of me remember what it was. I do recall that this nursery doesn't do anything via the Internet- no website and no e-mail. That's going to make it a needle in a haystack.
 
When you visit on a more regular basis, you don't have to go over board! I have a dog food supplier down that away & Oak Hill is only another 15 minutes.
FoxValley/Hausermann's is close. FoxValley may seem pricey but his plants are excellent quality!
Bloomington would be a few hours south.
I don't know of any orchid grower north of Milwaukee, if you find out let me know! I would like to drop in on WisonsinOrchid Society meeting, I bet someone there would know!
Acker's is near Madison, that's a couple of hours, they have nice plants for a reasonable cost.
PS. Do a search on this website - "new little deals" - you can see the damages done with one Oak Hill visit.
Also do 'Acker's' I was up there a couple weeks ago & posted pics. Enjoy
 
Thank you Marco, I'll pop down there when the kids are back to school. Not a high risk nursery for me based on their inventory but I know I'll find something.

Visit Oak Hill on a more regular basis??? I dropped almost $700 when I was there and only 2 plants were a gift for others- my MIL and one girlfriend. My husband took a look at what I brought home in the car and was rather surprised there was so little for what I spent. I told him they might grow and to consider it an experiment. He sort of just chuckled and walked away. I suppose I should do a search here for "new little deals" so I can show my husband that I am not the only one who has serious issues with Oak Hill.

Bummer to Ackers because I was just up in Madison visiting some of the botanical gardens with a group of gardeners in early June. If only I had known. It would have been no problem making a pit stop.

Hausermann's is one nursery that I had a bad exeperience with. I have limited space here to grow in the home because of dogs that would chew on my plants and cats that would use them as dietary supplements. I pretty much have to hang house plants from hooks, place them in terrariums and Wardian cases, or grow them all in two rooms where I can keep the doors shut. That's a problem with kids added to the mix. No means by which to quarantine new plants. That nursery zapped me on two plants. Probably a spot problem they were having because they do seem to have a good reputation but it ended up being my problem and it was costly. I really don't like mealies or mites and I had to use Orthene on all of my Nepenthes that were in close proximity as a prophylactic. That was the second time I was hit with pests. First time was a gift Hoya special ordered from a nursery out of HI that had "hitchhikers". I didn't spot the mealies until it was too late. Two bad experiences in all these years is a pretty good track record all factors considered.

If you drop in on that WI Orchid Society meeting, please do let me know what you learn of any nursery north of Milwaukee. Allegedly, the nursery has hardy native terrestrial orchids and that's mostly what I'm interested in.
 
I've actually heard quite a few negative things about Hausermann's in the past. People getting plants that weren't what they were supposed to be and them not making good on replacements. Things like that.

Will be moving this thread to the Cyp. forum in a few. Never apologize, Lorax, it's a learning experience! That's why we're all here, we like to help.

Edit - moved it to slipper culture, since the Cyp. forum is photograph based. :)
 
I hear ya, I know what you mean.....
Because Fox Valley is under Hausermann's roof it's hard to mention one without the other. Tom has a seperate growing area & as I said has quality plants, that are well monitored.
Hausermann ..... I think plants get too neglected there. The paphs & phrags are very dry. which is fine for the catts. Too much inventory/not enough help? There is a ton of staff for the open house & things are in tiptop shape. Other times it's like a morgue.
Don't show your husband my post - it's quite the opposite! I would think you filled a car to the gills spending $700 at Oak Hill!
Field trip to Acker's! A forum member in Michigan - Grandma MC, her grandson is moving to Madison, as we speak! She's going to let them get settled & then pay a visit. We're going to meet up somewhere/somehow along the way! Feel free to join us!
 
Thank you for moving this thread to a more appropriate area. Although I am no where near proficient in my identification of orchids, my friend from CA is and she stated she wouldn't purchase from Hausermann's again for the exact reasons mentioned by you. Me, I just want healthy pest free plants and wouldn't buy from them again because I don't appreciate getting hitchhikers. When I contacted them, Hausermann's told me their plants were pest free and that my hitchhikers must have come from plants purchased at another nursery because they didn't have any problems. Moot point sharing with them that the Nepenthes, few Paphiopedilum, and Hoya I had growing in that area had all been purchased several years earlier as it was evident they weren't going to take the plants back. I lost my beloved N. jacquelinae that cost me a couple hundred dollars when I had to drench it with Orthene. I never did replace that plant but will some day.

Say goldenrose, I didn't realize there were two nurseries at one location. I would go back to check out Fox Valley. No, I didn't fill a car after visiting Oak Hill. Wish I had filled my car but I didn't. I was buying mostly miniatures for terrariums. Several jewel orchids but quite a few minis that were mounted to hang from the sides of my terrariums for visual interest. I came home with exactly three boxes that were somewhere around 1' x 2', that was it to show for 6 hours roaming around at Oak Hill. Pathetic, I guess you seasoned veterans will have to show me how to shop better. You twisted my arm (just kidding because it doesn't take much to get me to visit a quality CP, orchid, or native plant nursery), I'll meet up at Ackers but I need a little notice because school will be starting soon and I have to drive kidlettes to and from. It would be best for me to drive up on a weekend since it's about a 2 hour drive but if I know in advance, I can get my husband to pick up from school at 2:40pm during the week. May I bring a girlfriend with me?
 
May I bring a girlfriend with me?

The more the merrier! Acker's is open on Saturdays, I also went on a Friday, which was kinda nice from a traffic standpoint!

UGH! what an expensive loss! Interesting, I was there about 10 days ago to pick up a couple of plants Tom had on hold for me. There was a man purchasing a large grammaphyllum(sp?) plant in bloom - it was being sprayed with a stinky aerosol, I knew it was insecticide!
 
I am a member of a carnivorous plant forum. If it's ok to mention which one I am a member at, I will. It is my understanding some sites allow the mention of other sites while some sites don't and I don't know the rules here. Over the course of the years, I've been blessed with having had the opportunity to meet many fellow enthusiasts. We've done our fair share of roadtrips but some of us will fly out to meet up to explore natural areas where CPs grow and some will also fly out to be together for what is referred to as an open-day. That's where a grower opens up their greenhouses and property to welcome fellow addicts. I missed the last one in Virginia because I was on vacation at the time but over one hundred people went and they were from all over the world. It's so nice to be able to put a face to folk one has been communicating with for years or buying plants from. I truly love the plants but the people have always been priceless. I must admit I am pleasantly surprised to learn there are people who garden locally (goldenrose) who are into orchids. The CPers are far and few between and neither the Chicago or Milwaukee area has an active CP Society. Actually, there is no CP society at all anywhere within a 300 mile radius. I just did a quick search and found a few orchid societies that might have meetings locally. Didn't realize they existed.

Good that my friend is welcome. I think she'd really like to come.

Regarding that one nursery, "There was a man purchasing a large grammaphyllum(sp?) plant in bloom - it was being sprayed with a stinky aerosol, I knew it was insecticide!"... once shame on them, twice shame on me. I won't be buying from them again. I do have to wonder how the other nursery under the same roof manages to keep their plants pest free. Must be an ongoing battle.
 
Forgot to mention a Friday visit to Ackers would be perfectly fine but I'd need a few weeks notice so my husband could pick up from school.
 
Lorax-

Feel free to post the name of your CP forum or community. There are quite a few of us here who enjoy CPs too, and grow them. I only have two but they help me keep the fungus gnats down.

Incidentally, I visited Bonsai West yesterday (which is about 10 min. from where I live). The owners there also have several CP gardens, and I met one of them yesterday who I had heard was also into Jap. orchids - which I've become recently interested in. We chatted for quite a while about our addictive pursuits and commonalities, and he offered to give me a tour of his orchid collection. When we went into his kitchen so he could show me his yellow Sedirea blooming, I noticed the salt water coral tank behind me and laughed - mentioned the fact that people here at the forum have many of the same passions, and as someone with five greenhouses on his property, he would fit in well with us. We are all textbook addicts. :)
 
International Carnivorous Plants Society-
http://www.carnivorousplants.org/

The ICPS Forums are mostly people who have been members of the ICPS but with the introduction of actual forums, there have been quite a few hobbyists joining these days which has livened us up a bit. Some came from the ListServe who wanted an opportunity to share photos and such. Here's the direct link to the forums-
http://icps.proboards105.com/

It's a good mix of people. One thing though, swear words aren't allowed at all.

Addictive pursuits you say... I think I understand ;) Sometimes gathering around with fellow textbook addicts is about the equivalent of going to a narcotics anonymous meeting where many members share their best sources at break time so more can get a fix. Enablers, a bunch of enablers! It doesn't get better than that when it comes to sharing a good plant source!

Which two CPs do you have? As far as gnat catchers go, nothing better than a Drosera binata or just about any Mexican Pinguicula. I keep gnat populations down to zero because I have seedlings here but I will stash an over ripe banana near many of my pings so they can enjoy some nice juicy fresh fruit flies. I've also been known to wave my plants over our compost bins that have fruit scraps in them to help our babies catch a meal on the go. I thoroughly enjoy feeding mosquitoes to my new Nep pitchers. I derive substantial pleasure knowing the mosquito that tried to feed on me is going to become mush in the digestive enzymes in no time flat. I really can't stand mosquitoes.
 
Which two CPs do you have? As far as gnat catchers go, nothing better than a Drosera binata or just about any Mexican Pinguicula. I keep gnat populations down to zero because I have seedlings here but I will stash an over ripe banana near many of my pings so they can enjoy some nice juicy fresh fruit flies. I've also been known to wave my plants over our compost bins that have fruit scraps in them to help our babies catch a meal on the go. I thoroughly enjoy feeding mosquitoes to my new Nep pitchers. I derive substantial pleasure knowing the mosquito that tried to feed on me is going to become mush in the digestive enzymes in no time flat. I really can't stand mosquitoes.

:D
Gee, I couldn't tell about that mosquito issue.

You're right on, I have a Drosera (a clumpy short spatulate one) and a ping. Not sure which one.
 
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.
This maybe the one you are asking about. It is in Baraboo Wi.
Dawn http://www.bluestemfarm.com/
 

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