Wikimedia Commons
Orchidaceae
Fairy Slipper Orchid
Calypso bulbosa
rare hidden treasure.
- Family
- Orchidaceae
- Genus
- Calypso
- Native to
- North America, northern Europe, northern Asia
- Bloom season
- Spring
- Type
- bulb
- Height
- 0.25-0.5 ft
- Sunlight
- shade
- Soil
- moist, acidic, humus-rich, mycorrhizal
- Water
- moderate
- Hardiness
- 2-7
- Lifespan
- perennial
Did you know
- The fairy slipper orchid is a pollination deceiver — it produces no nectar at all, but its bright colors and fake nectar guides lure naive queen bumblebees that find no reward.
- It is completely dependent on specific soil fungi for germination and survival; transplanting it almost always fails because the fungi cannot be moved.
- The single leaf emerges in autumn, overwinters under snow, performs photosynthesis in early spring, then dies down after the flower fades — a very brief active season.
- Named after Calypso, the sea-nymph of Homer's Odyssey who kept Odysseus hidden on her island — the orchid hides in deep forest shadows.
- It has one of the widest ranges of any orchid genus, yet is locally rare and declining almost everywhere due to habitat loss and picking by wildflower enthusiasts.
Color meanings
0
rare beauty
1
hidden grace
2
enchantment