Cypripedium 2011

[Maren]

Lovely clean plants and nice pictures, John.

Here is a view from an untidy patch of my garden. Note the size of the C. kentuckiense x tibeticum compared to the other cyps.

Right to left:

C. kentuckiense x tibeticum
C. Ulla Silkens
C. Emil

and some more brown and yellow jobs, probably C. parviflorum v pubescens, it was too dark to read the labels.
Most of my cypripediums have gone over, the hot spell did for them. We had a week of 25 degrees C, followed by a week of 15 C, and now it's heating up again. No chance.

[John Aipassa]

.....Lovely clean plants and nice pictures, John.

Here is a view from an untidy patch of my garden.....

Thank you Maren and don't we all have such an untidy spot in our garden like your's. At least you have these flowering gems brightening up the spot. Unfortunately I don't....

[angie]

John some real beauties there. I really like your Cyp,Sebastian. Some of mine still have their faces hidden. I get real excited just watching them unfold. My husband thinks I am a bit sad, he just doesn't understand 

Maren I have plenty bits in my garden that need tidying up. I start with things tidy but as the season goes on I start running out of space , don't think I will ever have enough Cypripedium to worry about space for them and when it comes to dividing them I will be worried, will just have to get Anthony back to Scotland to do it for me. I wonder when he will come back for a holiday 

Angie

[Michael J Campbell]

Cyp Lothar Pinkepank, I hope

[Tony Willis]

Michael very nice.

Two mine today a small
Cypripedium tibeticum and
Cypripedium Ulla Silkens

[John Aipassa]

John some real beauties there. I really like your Cyp,Sebastian. Some of mine still have their faces hidden. I get real excited just watching them unfold. My husband thinks I am a bit sad, he just doesn't understand 

Angie

Angie,
Luckily my wife has got a little bit more understanding but she somtetimes shakes her head when she sees me lying down in the garden in all kinds of difficult positions to get a good photo shot of a flower .  A few cramps are worth the effort though  .

Here is a photo of an unfolding Rascal and two more shoots of x andrewsii and Sebastian.

[Anthony Darby]

What's the difference in size between x andrewsii and "Sebastian" John?

[John Aipassa]

They are much of the same size Anthony. The pouches are about 2 to 2,5 centimeters. I also have smaller flowering x andrewsii, but these are young 1st time flowering plants. 

[angie]

John those are lovely pictures. Worth getting cramp. I like those twisted bits, better call them by their right name, tepals ( had to look up a old posting by Anthony forgot what they were called )

I am so enjoying mine. I have my Cypripediums in pots I don't think I would like to chance them in the garden. I can see me getting Cyps for birthdays and Christmas presents 

Angie

[John Aipassa]

Angie,

My Sebastian Cyps are apparently very happy in the garden. I remember Svante Malmgren mentioning once that Sebastian could be a bit more vigorous, but that is not my experience. It is doing very well in my garden. I have not a single Cyp in a pot except for acaule. I love seeing them growing with ferns, hostas and stuff . Don't be bashful. Just give it a try if you have more than one .

Cheers,

[WimB]

Angie,

My Sebastian Cyps are apparently very happy in the garden. I remember Svante Malmgren mentioning once that Sebastian could be a bit more vigorous, but that is not my experience. It is doing very well in my garden. I have not a single Cyp in a pot except for acaule. I love seeing them growing with ferns, hostas and stuff . Don't be bashful. Just give it a try if you have more than one .

Cheers,

John,

in which soil mix do you grow Cypripedium acaule. I've always wondered if I could grow it outside in an artificial swamp together with Sarracenia, Pinguicula, Drosera and some other orchids. But since it's not very easy to find and grow (I've heard) I'm in doubt if I should buy it.

[angie]

Hi John

I see that you live in the Netherlands and have nice sandy soil. I have hardly any soil a want is under that is broken rock. But after saying this I could look for a bit in the garden and get my rock breaker in ( that would be my husband ) and make a nice bit for them to grow in, but l could try one and see how it goes. 

Angie

[John Aipassa]

John,

in which soil mix do you grow Cypripedium acaule. I've always wondered if I could grow it outside in an artificial swamp together with Sarracenia, Pinguicula, Drosera and some other orchids. But since it's not very easy to find and grow (I've heard) I'm in doubt if I should buy it.

Hello Wim,

I have suffered losses and they are not the cheapest ones to buy. The key is to keep the growing medium very acid (below PH 4.5).  I now have my acaule in a 50/50 peat/sand mix. The peat is actually dead Spaghnum peat moss, which I can buy in these large bails in garden centres. To keep the acidity low I water the acaules with demineralised water with apple cider vinegar added to it (one tablespoon per 2 litres). The PH is 3.5 in my pots. If the PH rises above 4.5 than pathogens will get stronger and attack the root system eventually killing the plant.

I have read reports of acaule thriving in artificial swamps/bogs with live Spaghnum peat as a medium. Live Spagnhum peat keeps the acidity low too so it figures. I will try this method next year if I have a well established artificial bog with live Spagnhum peat.

[John Aipassa]

Hi John

I see that you live in the Netherlands and have nice sandy soil. I have hardly any soil a want is under that is broken rock. But after saying this I could look for a bit in the garden and get my rock breaker in ( that would be my husband ) and make a nice bit for them to grow in, but l could try one and see how it goes. 

Angie

Hi Angie, Do not forget to open up the soil. Although I have sandy soil, I prepare my planting spots for my Cyps with a certain mix to open it up. I dig a hole with a diameter of about 25 centimeters and about 20 centimers deep. Don't tell your husband that he has to dig that deep before he has started  . In the first 5 centimeters I put a layer of bark for drainage and the rest is a mix of my garden soil, perlite, seramis and coconut coir (the latter is becoming more and more popular as a potting medium here in the Netherlands). But if you have garden soil with a very crumbly structure than that would be fine too. After planting I top it all with a layer of mulch.

Good luck.

[Graham Catlow]

Cypripedium formosanum today