Orchid of the day: Cypripedium acaule

Cypripedium acaule

We went away this long Memorial weekend to a very relaxing retreat up in Western Maryland, in Frostburg. It is a lovely place where we can bring our beloved dog, Anthony, and enjoy the woodlands and an attempt by Arne to fly fish in the Casselman river. I thought this week, I would be posting about one of our orchids at home while he was fishing and just enjoy the quiet sound of the woods.

A) May 27th, 2016. Cypripedium acaule amidst the pine forest

Well, that was not the case. I don’t recall exactly when and why, but Arne left our cabin and walked to the main building to fetch something. Upon returning, Arne was all excited and said, “You have to see this!” He whipped out his cell phone and showed me a rather well focused photo of an interesting flower. By now, I recognized that this was an orchid. In fact this really sparked my interest as I really enjoy discovering native orchids growing out in the wild. 

 

B) The orchids were spread out over a relatively large area.

It became apparent to us that there are wild native orchids flourishing in this beautiful area. We figured out that this is a Cypripedium acaule, which is a slipper orchid native to the Northern region of the United States. I have to admit, from someone who comes from Malaysia, it is amazing that orchids are so spread out in the world especially in areas I would consider cold. However, I must remember that the Cypripedium are also found up north as high up as Scandinavia. It does make you think and open your mind about the tenacity of these wonderful species.

C) The vivid pink and dark vein patterns made these flowers stand out on the forest floor.

What caught my eye was the size of the flowers and their vivid colors. The natural spread of the flower is up to 4 inches. It was also fascinating that these orchids seem to thrive in this pine forest which would likely have high acidity in the ground but upon closer examination, we noticed that these orchids were thriving in the outskirt region of this forest with some sunlight. Arne and the owner of the property were genuinely amazed how these orchids can survive in this turpentine rich soil as most slipper orchids enjoy alkaline rich soil to survive and flourish. 

D) As we walked down, we saw a cluster of the orchids to the left. Who would have thought this environment would harbor orchids?

E) The cluster of four flowering orchids.

F) Frontal view.

G) Rear angle.

I) One of the orchid without any flowering stems, emerging from the ground. There were several of them at this stage.
Normally, according to the owner, Mike, he noticed that the orchids would bloom in June and disappeared within a few short weeks. He thought they came out earlier this year in comparison to the previous years. In fact he seemed genuinely happy that we shared our enthusiasm about this flowering orchid with him. He has since posted a photo of the orchid on their lodge's Facebook page.

J) In its natural element, Cypripedium acaule. It was an exciting find!

Arne and I had a great time putting this post together. It was fun running up and down the hill to find these wonderful orchids. We look forward to our next visit here to enjoy the peace and quiet plus now, we can include 'orchid hunting'! By the way, if you are ever close to Frostburg, drop by the Savage River Lodge, you can bring your dog!