Cypripedium 2007

[Ewelina Wajgert]

Thank you, Joakim. You have helped me. In that case mine is fasciolatum.

[Joakim B]

Ewelina You are wellcome. It is nice to help by just referring to people with more knowledge than me. One need not to know the answer just where to find it   .
Faciolaatum gives big flowers and it is now used a lot to make big flowered hybrids.
Kind regards
Joakim

[Anthony Darby]

The different colours of flowers on my ventricosum has raised some comment. here is a pic of the plant in 1999 with a single, double flowering, stem.

[johanneshoeller]

Some Cyps from my garden
plectrochilon
calceolus
smithii
flavum x reginae (3 different)
guttatum
macranthum x parviflorum

Hans

[Anthony Darby]

Here is Cypripedium x ventricosum album (two clones + 'Emil' to the left) in yesterday morning's frost. No damage done.

[johanneshoeller]

Cyp. montanum x, yatabeanum

Hans

[Paddy Tobin]

Anthony & Hans,

I could fall seriously in love with these plants. I have never grown them only admired photographs in books and catalogues and have always been put off by the very high prices and the fear they might not be hardy in the open garden. With that in mind I was delighted to see Anthony's covered in frost with no ill effects. We are well past frosts here;  it would be very exceptional to have a frosty night for us at this time of year. It might be time for me to give them a try.

Can you recommend a good source of plants? - reasonably priced and good quality.

Paddy

[Anthony Darby]

Peter Corkhill is the best grower and supplier of his own seed-grown plants. I can send you his last list, but he only sends out dormant plants from October to March. This link should prove useful Paddy [ http://www.cypripedium.de/forum/messages/574.html], but also Ratcliffe Orchids (Formerly 'Hardy Orchids Ltd http://www.hardyorchids.co.uk/) and Laneside Alpines. Hayley's Hardy Orchids too [ http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/hayleys.hardy.orchids/]. BTW, most cyps are hardy down to -28^oC. More problems arise from these plants not having a long enough vernalisation period i.e. up to 4 months where the soil temperature is 5^oC or below.

[Joakim B]

Paddy If You are up for an adventure You can by seedlings that are more tricky to take care of but also much cheaper.
A place to buy them and also some that are big is Phytesia
http://www.phytesia.com/particuliers_plantes.php
I have only bought seedlings from them.
Frosch is selling nice plants once a year andthey are good quality and price but finish in hours!!!
http://www.w-frosch.onlinehome.de/menu_e.htm

Good luck with them
Joakim

[Anthony Darby]

If you have not tried cyps before DON'T buy seedlings. They take years to reach flowering size and are very difficult. Hybrids are best as they are easier and faster e.g. I bought Cypripedium 'Philipp' 18 months ago. Last year it had three stems but no flowers. This year it has 5 flowering stems; a year before I bought 'Emil' which had one flower in 2005, 12 in 2006 and 19 this year. In 2001 I bought C. 'Sabine' and C. macranthos seedlings (one of each). The 'Sabine' flowered in 2006 (two flowers in 2006, 7 this year) but the macranthos still hasn't produced a flower yet.

[ellenndan]

Hi there Paddy, i have bought quite a few Cyps off Jeff at Laneside alpines, seedlings to flowering size all doing really well.

[johanneshoeller]

The smaller Cyps will flower after 3-4 years.

An unknown Cyp (for me), reginae and farreri.
The last Cyp is not mine.

Hans

[derekb]

Paddy,  I have just been contacted by Hayley ( address in Anthony`s  post) she has some just arriving at a very reasonable price but hurry there are not very many.
 Derek

[johanneshoeller]

Paddy, in which Cyps are you interested? Maybe I can help you. Prices are very reasonable.

Hans

[Paddy Tobin]

Many thanks to all for such helpful advice and encouragement. They really are an extraordinarily beautiful genus of plants and I would dearly like to start growing them.


Hans, you ask which Cypripedium I would like to grow. The answer is naively simple - those that will grow for me. I imagine it is better to start with the easier ones first before venturing on to more difficult species.

I hope you who are experienced at growing cypripedium might make suggestions.

Paddy