Cypripedium candidum

White Lady's Slipper ( Cypripedium candidum )

The White Lady's Slipper ( Cypripedium candidum ) is a species of the genus Cypripedium in the orchid family ( Orchidaceae).

Features

The White Lady's Slipper is a perennial plant with a rhizome, which reaches stature heights 12-38 inches. The three to four, rarely five leaves are lanceolate to oval, 1.5 to 4 inches wide, 7 to 20 centimeters long. You are in the lower to middle range of the stem and stand almost upright. There is always only one flower available. The outer and inner tepals are greenish brown, sometimes tinged brown, often spotted or striped maroon. The outer tepals are as long as the lip. The upper outer perianth is 2-3 inches long. The inner tepals are 2.5 to 4.5 inches long and turned. The lip is white, 2 to 3 inches long with a 1 to 1.5 inches wide, front tapered opening. The Staminodium is lanceolate to oval.

Bloom time is from April to June. The leaves are still hardly unfolds at flowering time, the plants reach their size until after the flowering period.

Occurrence

The White Lady's Slipper is found in the temperate warm to temperate eastern and central North America on limestone and marl. It grows in moist to fresh prairie, wet meadows, ravines, swamps and marshes, dry rock corridors, rare in light, moist woods before. Altitudes 70-700 (1000) meters are populated.

Use

The White Lady's Slipper is rarely used as an ornamental plant for bog and Sumpfbeetränder and vessels.

Documents

• Corner Hardt J. Hunter, Friedrich Ebel, Peter Hanelt, Gerd Müller K. (ed.): Rothmaler Exkursionsflora of Germany. Volume 5: Herbaceous ornamental and useful plants. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Berlin Heidelberg 2008, ISBN 978-3-8274-0918-8.
• Charles J. Sheviak: Cypripedium. In: Flora of North America Editorial Committee ( eds.): Flora of North America North of Mexico. 26, Oxford University Press, New York and Oxford 1993 , p 503 ( eFloras.org, accessed on 18/01/2009 ).