Calypso bulbosa - Orchid Board

ronaldhanko · #1 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 03:30 AM

Went on a short hike Saturday with the Washington Native Orchid Society to see the Calypsos in bloom. Hiked in the area of Deschutes Falls and the Bald Hills near Yelm, WA. It was a wet and rainy morning, but we saw hundreds of Calypsos (Fairy Slippers) as well as other spring wildflowers, Chocolate Lilies (Fritillaria lanceolata) Small-flowered Trilliums (Trillium parviflorum, a very rare plant found only in a few locations in Washington), Camassia quamash, and Erythronium oreganum (Oregon Fawn Lily). Here's the crown jewel of them all:

Fairy Slipper (Calypso bulbosa) on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ronaldhanko/3501026898/

tuvoc · #2 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 11:22 AM

Awesome, Ron. Makes me want to dance.LOL

Kim

isurus79 · #3 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 05:24 PM

Thats a really cool little native. I would love to see a whole clump of these growing on a hillside.

ronaldhanko · #4 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isurus79

Thats a really cool little native. I would love to see a whole clump of these growing on a hillside.

They don't really grow in clumps but can be found scattered all around an area, usually one alone or c a couple together.

SP2340 · #5 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 08:29 PM

Wow, incredible flower, thanks!!

greenbean · #6 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 08:41 PM

I just LOVE Calypso bulbosa! I hope they will still be in bloom when I get home at the end of this week! Coming upon an area scattered with Calypsos is a wonderful sight to behold.

Wonderful photography, Ron. I took a few pictures of Calypsos in the Columbia Gorge, but even in the trees it can be too windy to get a clear shot, and the camera that I had at the time wasn't all that great, either. It may just be the light, but I think yours are lighter than the ones in the gorge. I seem to remember them being a darker pink.

ronaldhanko · #7 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenbean

I just LOVE Calypso bulbosa! I hope they will still be in bloom when I get home at the end of this week! Coming upon an area scattered with Calypsos is a wonderful sight to behold.

Wonderful photography, Ron. I took a few pictures of Calypsos in the Columbia Gorge, but even in the trees it can be too windy to get a clear shot, and the camera that I had at the time wasn't all that great, either. It may just be the light, but I think yours are lighter than the ones in the gorge. I seem to remember them being a darker pink.

There was considerable variation in the ones we saw. They varied in color, some of them much darker than the ones I have posted here, some without the teeth on the end of the slipper, and some without a complete pouch or without the dark markings on the pouch.

lambelkip · #8 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 01:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ronaldhanko

They don't really grow in clumps but can be found scattered all around an area, usually one alone or c a couple together.

Ron, in areas where they grow well, they're known to form very large clumps (sometimes as much as 30 feet across). it's truly a spectacular sight. unfortunately, the clusters are usually poached, so the only ones you're likely to see in the wild are solitary. The only large clump I've seen in the wild was illegally taken a couple of years ago.

dgenovese1 · #9 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 01:29 AM

Ron,
I love seeing orchids growing in their native environment, and you've captured these beauties wonderfully!

Thanks for taking the time to post these great photos for us to enjoy!

ronaldhanko · #10 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 03:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lambelkip

Ron, in areas where they grow well, they're known to form very large clumps (sometimes as much as 30 feet across). it's truly a spectacular sight. unfortunately, the clusters are usually poached, so the only ones you're likely to see in the wild are solitary. The only large clump I've seen in the wild was illegally taken a couple of years ago.

Love to see them growing that way. We've seen them in two protected areas but always growing scattered.