Cypripedium reginae is native to North America and probably China and Mexico. It is known that these plants are found in Canada from Newfoundland west to Saskatchewan and in the northeast of the United States...
Cypripedium reginae also called as Showy Lady's-slipper, Pink-and-white Lady's-slipper, the Queen's Lady's-slipper, Calceolus hirsutus, Calceolus reginae, Cypripedium album, Cypripedium canadense, Cypripedium hirsutum, Cypripedium hirsutum f. album, Cypripedium humile, Cypripedium reginae f. albolabium, Cypripedium reginae f. album, Cypripedium reginae var. album, Cypripedium spectabile, Fissipes hirsuta, is a species of the genus Cypripedium. This species was described by Thomas Walter in 1788.
IDENTIFY CYPRIPEDIUM REGINAE
Cypripedium reginae is native to North America and probably China and Mexico. It is known that these plants are found in Canada from Newfoundland west to Saskatchewan and in the northeast of the United States, reaching as far south as North Carolina and in the west to Missouri. The plants were also found near Monterey, Nuevo Leon in northeastern Mexico. There are reports that they come from western China. These plants usually grow on neutral or slightly acidic soils or on the outskirts of mossy, marshy swamps and swamps.
Showy Lady's-slipper is a medium sized, cold growing terrestrial, which reaching 36-90 cm long with a 36-90 cm tall stem carrying 7, ovate-lanceolate, suberect to spreading, plicate, subacute, 10-25 cm long and 6.4-15.0 cm wide leaves with undulate margins.
Queen's Lady's-slipper blooms in the spring through early fall on a slender, terminal inflorescence that has from 1 to rarely 4, color variable flowers subtended by a leafy bract. The flowers can be almost 10 cm long. The flakes of both whorls are usually waxy-white, while almost all of the white lip is marked with crimson-crimson or pink spots on the front. This color can be more intense on plants grown in brighter light. The pocket-shaped lip is flat, vertical, white furrows and often has pink or purple veins. The egg-shaped base of the pollen chamber is colored yellow with red spots. Although very rare, you can find clones of completely white color.
CYPRIPEDIUM REGINAE CARE AND CULTURE
Cultural information should only be used as a guide, and should be to be adapted to suit you. Your physical location; where you grow your plants, how much time you have to devote to their care, and many other factors, will need to be taken into account. Only then can you decide on the cultural methods that best suit you and your plants.
Light:
Cypripedium reginae needs a light level of 40000-50000 lux. It is difficult to grow the plants to provide full sun exposure while keeping the roots cool, so they are usually planted in full sun for 2-3 hours in the early morning and 50% shade for the rest of the day. Those that grow in lighter positions are usually lower, have lighter leaves and a more stained pouch, which can be even almost red if it grows in full sun. The seedlings growing in full sun bloom earlier, sometimes even in 2 years after planting.
Temperature:
The average temperature in summer is 25-28 ° C, at night 14-17 ° C, which gives a daily difference of 11 ° C. The average temperature in winter days is -6 to -3 ° C, at night -14 to -11 ° C, which gives a daily difference of 8-9 ° C. The plants can withstand several hours of temperatures reaching 32 ° C or more, but night cooling must be ensured.
Humidity:
Queen's Lady's-slipper needs the humidity of 65-75% for most of the year, falling to almost 60% for several spring months. High humidity is necessary in the cultivation of this species. If it is grown in areas where the humidity usually drops below 50% in the afternoon, the plants should be grown in a greenhouse or other place where the humidity will be higher.
Substrate, growing media and repotting:
The best results are obtained using only pearlite in plastic pots. The second place is occupied by a thick garden sand containing angular grains up to 0.4 cm in diameter. Others state that good results are also achieved by using meadow soil at a pH of about 6.5, while others are successful using a mixture of pearlite and sand as well as thick vermiculite and sand.
Regardless of the substrate used, the plants grown in pots should be placed on sacks with water to keep the substrate moist and the lowest roots should be properly in the water. The plants grown in areas where the winters are cold enough to provide the necessary conditions during dormancy, can grow on artificial swamps. Such a swamp can be made by digging a pit with a depth of about 30 cm and lining it with gardening foil. For fixing, a frame made of 15 cm wide boards should be made. The upper part of the excavation and the top of the border should be on the same level as the surrounding area. The second same frame is attached to the first one. The foil should be arranged so that its edges lie above the lower frame, underneath the top, going out to the surrounding area. Make sure that the film does not leak, filling the bottom with water. If there are no leaks, the selected soil should be mixed with organic components such as compost, leaves, peat, etc. and put back in the excavation. Add top layer of peat. Black peat from the bottom layer is best, if available. Orchids are planted in the upper 5-cm layer of peat, where their roots are constantly moist, but the plants themselves are never underwater. In the autumn you can add about 30 cm leaves to improve the insulation against extremely low temperatures. These leaves will unfold during the next spring and practically disappear before summer. In most areas the rain should keep the "swamp" wet enough, but in some areas, in the dry summer weather, it may be necessary to add water.
Watering:
These plants grow on swamps, in forests on the outskirts of swamps or along streams. They are always found where there is constant access of water to keep the roots moist and cool. The plants grown in pots are usually placed on trays or trays with water to provide the necessary constant moisture.
Fertilizer:
Balanced, complete fertilizer containing both macro and microelements, eg NPK 7-7-7 or 7-9-5, should be used at a concentration of 1/4-1/2 of the recommended dose for ordinary ornamental plants and should be used every 2 3 weeks, if the plant is grown in an inorganic medium. After the first 6 weeks of growth, its concentration should be gradually reduced. Before fertilizing, the substrate in the pot should be rinsed with running water equal to twice the volume of the pot. If too much fertilizer has been used or the salts have been deposited in the substrate, the ends of the leaves will begin to brown and wither. To complicate this issue, it is worth adding that the same symptoms can be caused by anything else that does not like the plant.
On purchasing seedlings, to avoid fertilizers where the main source of nitrogen is urea, because urea is a poison for young plants of Cypripedium reginae. It is recommended to use high-nitrogen fertilizer at the beginning of the season, when the plants are actively growing, then switch to high-phosphoric fertilizer or "bloom booster" in the second half of the season to strengthen the plants before the period of dormancy and to improve flowering the following year.
Rest period:
After 3-4 months of growth, Cypripedium reginae need a period of winter dormancy at low temperatures. The plants should be kept at 0-4 ° C and kept in the dark for at least 3 months. For plants grown on rebates or in artificial marshes in colder regions, such conditions can be ensured by leaving them in place and using a 30 cm layer of leaves, straw or other mulch. In warmer areas, the plants should be kept in refrigerators after watering the substrate in a pot and then enclosing it in a strong plastic bag for freezing. Before closing, all roots on the surface should be covered so that they do not dry out and do not die during the cold rest period. All plants, regardless of how they are grown, during the winter sleep should be occasionally irrigated to protect the roots from drying out.
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