Coming Up Orchids
Enthusiasts come to the rescue of Minnesota’s state flower
By Meleah Maynard
Photo by Sher Stoneman
There’s nothing new about “orchidelirium,” as numerous books, blogs, and even plays term the condition. Love of the plants has inspired horticulturalists and collectors since Victorian times. The thrill of discovery sent nineteenth-century orchid hunters around the globe to search for species growing in remote locales, while their wealthy benefactors built ever-more extravagant greenhouses to house their collected plunder.
Lady-Like Minnesotans
Though orchid collecting reached obsessive proportions—at least among a certain class of Victorians—the plants are still found almost everywhere in the world. Even frigid Minnesota hosts 45 species, including the showy lady’s slipper (Cypripedium reginae), our official state flower since 1902.This beauty, the largest and arguably most stunning of our six native species of lady’s slippers, can grow to more than 2 feet high. The showy lady’s slipper produces flowers that are 2- to 3-inches wide and so extraordinary they hardly seem real. In each flower, sepals (the lower petals that protect a bud before it blooms) and petals of pure white hover over a delicate, pouch-like lip that resembles a tiny pink- and white-streaked slipper. Once established, showy lady’s slippers can live for decades, though it can take a plant started from seed 14 to 16 years to produce its first bloom.
While orchids grow throughout Minnesota, thriving in all manner of habitats, it isn’t always easy to find them. “Orchids aren’t something you can usually see from your car. You have to get out and walk,” says Welby Smith, long-time botanist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and author of Orchids of Minnesota (University of Minnesota Press, 1993). Most orchids don’t bloom for long, and blooms make the plants easier to spot. Many orchids, such as the dragon’s mouth (Arethusa bulbosa) grow as singular flowers rather than in eye-catching clumps. Others, such as early coralroot (Corallorhiza trifida), are so well camouflaged they blend easily with surrounding vegetation.
Others are just too small to be spotted. Countless researchers, botanists, and photographers—who routinely tromp through insect-infested swamps, bogs, and woodlands—have managed to see only a couple dozen of the orchid species Minnesota has to offer.
The showy lady’s slipper isn’t so easily missed—fortunate for those who simply wish to observe our state flower in its natural habitat, unfortunate for those who want to pick the blooms or (illegally) poach the plant. Tall and pretty, the showy lady’s slipper flourishes in damp woodlands. It also has a fateful fondness for roadside ditches, tempting passersby to stop and pluck it. It’s illegal to remove lady’s slippers (and many other woodland and wetland plants) from public and private land, without a landowner’s written permission. Still, poachers regularly take these plants from the wild to add to their own gardens or to sell. “Poaching is a big problem,” says Smith, “particularly from national and state forests. We’re losing orchids, especially rare ones, that don’t reproduce quickly. If people were allowed to do it, they’d dig up orchids by the truckload and they would be lost from the landscape.”
Saving Orchids
Human encroachment is a bigger threat than poachers. As open land is developed, forests cut down, and marshes drained, wild orchids lose habitat. And that’s where orchid rescuers come into the picture (see sidebar, “Damsels in Distress”). Armed with the proper permits and certifications required by the state, they work to save orchids and other native plants from destruction.Minneapolis gardener, Ted Bair, and his partner, Harvey Filister, bought the orchids they grow in their backyard from an eccentric orchid rescuer who knew his plants so intimately he could tell one from another by the way they smelled. “I remember one time he got this box out of his truck,” Bair says. “It was just a bunch of stems sticking out of a dirt ball and I asked him what variety they were. He shoved his face right into the ball to smell it and told me they were ‘showies’ (showy lady’s slippers). And, by God, when they bloomed, he was right.”
Bair nursed the small clumps of “showies” back to health. Now, nine years later, he has expanded them into a collection admired by many garden tour groups. Three other Minnesota native orchids can be found in his garden as well: the small yellow lady’s slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum), the large yellow lady’s slipper (Cypripedium calceolus), and the purple-fringed orchid (Platanthera pyscodes).
While orchids have a reputation of being hard to grow at home, Bair says he doesn’t do a lot to keep the plants happy from year to year. “Every spring and fall I cover them with a layer of peat moss and then I water them really well,” he explains. Then he waits for them to start blooming again in May. “The yellows bloom first, and then the ‘showies’ and the purple-fringed orchids. They’re so beautiful. It’s just amazing.” Most orchids in Minnesota bloom in May and June, and can last anywhere from four days to two weeks before dying back until the next year.
Caveat Emptor
Those who have a permit to collect orchids and other natives and are certified to sell by the state Department of Agriculture are considered reputable suppliers of the coveted plants. But, some experts, Smith for one, discourage people from buying rescued orchids. Instead, he suggests buying from places that raise orchids from tissue cultures, such as Spangle Creek Labs in Bovey. “It’s the only way to be sure what you’re getting,” Smith says.Other experts disagree. “I think rescuing plant material that is bound for destruction is a good thing,” says Steven Shimek, who supervises Minnesota nursery inspectors for the Department of Agriculture. “I think it’s short sighted not to include that as an option for home gardeners.”
Smith contends that plants like showy lady’s slippers should not be grown at home—better to view them living in their natural habitat, he says. “To me, it’s a little like taking a bald eagle and putting it in a cage.”
Into the (Not-So) Wild
If you’re not interested in schlepping into the wilderness to see Minnesota’s native orchids, these easy-to-visit places are for you.The Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
Theodore Wirth Park in Minneapolis has large yellow lady’s slippers in bloom beginning mid- to late May. Showy lady’s slippers can also be seen there around mid-June. 612-370-4903.
The University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
Several native orchid varieties grow here. Some are easy to spot, while others require a guide to help you find them. Call ahead: 952-443-1400.
Lake Bemidji State Park and Itasca State Park
If you’re willing to hike a bit, both parks have several species of native orchids. Call ahead to ask a naturalist which species will be in bloom. Lake Bemidji State Park, 218-755-3843; and Itasca State Park, 218-266-2100.
Damsels in Distress
Showy lady’s slippers are considered to be extremely difficult to grow from seed because of their symbiotic relationship with fungi found in certain soils. Instead, check out these Minnesota suppliers for ready-to-bloom seedlings:Blue Heron Lady’s Slipper Company, Dundas
Owner and orchid rescuer Tom Nelson, whose operation is inspected by the state, sells many varieties of cypripediums. Call 507-301-8613.
Wildflower Rescue of MN, Northfield
This state-inspected rescue business, owned by Jane and Brad Pausch, sells varieties of cypripediums and other native plants. Call 507-645-4369 for an appointment.
Winsome Orchids, Independence
Showy lady’s slippers and yellow lady’s slippers, rescued by the Pausches, are available for sale in April and May. Call 763-972-9708, or visit the shop at 7978 County Rd. 11, Independence, www.winsomeorchids.com.
Orchids Limited, Plymouth
“Showies” and other varieties of lady’s slippers, rescued by Tom Nelson, are for sale when available. Call 763-559-6425, or visit the greenhouse at 4630 N. Fernbrook Ln., Plymouth.
Spangle Creek Labs, Bovey
Bill and Carol Steele, owners, sell in-vitro propagated “showies” through the mail. Their motto: “Grow Without Guilt.” Call 218-247-0245, or visit www.spanglecreeklabs.com.
Meleah Maynard is a Minneapolis writer and master gardener.
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