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Cypripediums and Hardy Orchids

Diverse orchids from around the globe.

Some of these groups are relatively easy to grow, like the Bletilla and Pleiones, and some are more challenging, like the Cypripediums. The cultural requirements for most of these orchids are similar. They require well-drained but moist soil when in active growth and excellent (almost dry) drainage in the winter when dormant. Light shade or partial sun works well. Bletilla are more tolerant of soil conditions and require more sun than other species. Below is our 2020 listing.

Please note we are only shipping in the fall, within Canada, and that shipping is limited to plants that fall within a certain size and durability range. We will begin taking orders August 15th 2025 and will drop a list of available plants shortly before that. Please also note that this grow list is a living document that changes with the seasons and daily sales. It is constantly in flux and is meant to give a general idea of what we grow rather than a concrete list. Though we generally have the majority of these plants in stock, we cannot make any guarantees.

Bletilla

This is a wonderful group of easy-to-grow hardy ground Orchids. They are best planted 5cm deep in light shade to full sun in well-drained humus-rich soil. In colder areas (Zone 5-6), they need to be planted 10-15cm deep, and in yet colder areas, they can easily be grown in pots indoors or in an alpine house.

Bletilla striata
Ht. 20-40cm. Z5-6. This hardy ground orchid has long, arching ribbed leaves and soft rose to magenta erect inflorescence of up to 10 flowers.

Bletilla striata Kuchibeni Crimson Mouth Bletilla
Ht. 20-40cm. Z5-6. A new selection of soft pale pink flowers with white ruffled lip crests infused with deep pink-purple at the mouth.

Bletilla striata ` Soryu’
An awesome mauve-blue flowered Bletilla with darker mauve blue lip. Soryu means Blue Dragon.

Bletilla striata var japonica alba
Ht. 20-40cm. Z5-6. Similar to species but with white flowers; some with pale lilac margin on the lip.

Bletilla striata variegated (albostriata)
Ht. 20-40cm. Z5-6. It is the same as the species except the leaves are striped with white.

Bletilla `Brigantes’(striata X ochracea)

Z 5-6. A variable cross with mid-rise-purple petals and sepals. Purple lip with yellow markings.

Bletilla `Penway Dragon’ (formosana x szetschuaunica)
Z5-6. Flowers in this cross are variable but typically have purple-pink petals and sepals, a white lip with a purple-pink margin, and a spot. This has turned out to be one of the more stunning and vigorous selections. Plant in full sun to part shade.

Bletilla `Penway Paris’ (striata X szetschuanica)

Z 5-6. Rose purple petals, sepals and lip with white keels on the lip. Variable.

Bletilla Ochracea

Zone 5-6. The most sought-after hardy bletila with yellow flowers Light highlighted with red, purple and yellow speckled lips. Prefers a sunny spot to semi-shade in well-draining soil.

Cypripediums (Lady Slippers)

The most beautiful of all the Hardy Ground Orchids are the Lady Slippers; however, they are not the easiest plants to grow. Frequently, people need several attempts before mastering their cultivation. In cultivation, many have successfully grown them in pure perlite or pots with a mix of equal parts of peat, sand and perlite. In nature, they often grow in bogs but tend not to like soggy conditions. Until recently, it was not known how to germinate the seed of these beauties, but a few people (labs) have worked out how to in a sterile medium (including us now). We will be offering laboratory-raised seedlings that are out of culture for one or two seasons. These should bloom in two to four years. We will also have a small selection of mature single-eyed divisions of garden-grown plants (mature plants). We have also recently begun to sell large plants with two growth points (double-eyed Divisions).

Cypripedium formosanum (C.japonicum var.formosanum)
Ht. 40-50cm. Z6-7. This native of Taiwan has a large pale pink lip pouch, with petals and sepals spotted darker pink. The leaves are rounded and pleated like a fan. It blooms early summer. This species is very easy to cultivate. It has mature single-eyed divisions.

Cypripedium Gabriela (kentuckiense x fasciolatum)
Ht.40cm. Z4. The huge flowers from fasciolatum and huge flowers from kentuckiense have merged in this beauty. Large creamy yellow lip often light marked with red, sepals and tepals a lovely rich reddish-brown.

Cypripedium Gabriela (kentuckiense x fasciolatum)
Larger double eyed plant

Cypripedium Gisela (parviflorumX macranthos)
Ht. 25cm. Z5. This is a robust garden hybrid and it is easy to grow. Flower tepals are a rich burgundy-red with lighter streaks that have a touch of yellow. The large, inflated pouch is creamy yellow streaked and infused with burgundy-red. They start off yellow in bud, then age to burgundy-red. Bloom-sized seedlings. One of the easiest Lady Slippers to grow.

Cypripedium Gisela
Larger double-eyed plant

Cypripedium memoriam Shawna Austin (hotei x calceolus)
Ht. 60cm. Z4. This awesome hybrid between macranthos var. hotei-atsumorianum and calceolus is a must-have. The flowers are variable but generally plum-coloured, sometimes with the creamy yellow showing through on the pouch. These are mature, seed-raised, bloom-sized plants.

Cypripedium reginae
N.A.Native. Ht. 90cm. Z4. The showiest of all North American Cyps. The flowers have white sepals and petals, a large pink lip pouch and a white staminoid with a yellow blotch and red spotting. These are five-year-old seedlings that should bloom in a year.

Cypripedium reginae
Larger double-eyed plant

Cypripedium reginae alba
N.A.Native. Ht. 90cm. Z4. The rarer pure white form of the species. Mature single-eyed plants.

Cypripedium reginae alba
Larger double-eyed plant

Cypripedium Sabine (C. Fasciolatum x C. macranthos )
Ht. Z4. Huge flowers have a large white lip with a faintly infused pink venation and heavier venation on the sepals and petals. Variable. Bloom-sized seedlings.

Cypripedium Sabine
Larger double-eyed plant

Cypripedium x ventricosum light
AKA Cypripedium Ventricosum Pastel, this is a hybrid between the white C. macranthos album and the yellow and brown C. calceolus. The result is a magnificent plant with a large white to creamy white pouch, sepals, and tepals, often with a small amount of red speckling on the tepals.

Dactylorhiza

These wonderful hardy ground orchids are currently widely planted throughout Europe. Initially, the flower stalks are short, but as they get older, the flower stalks get longer and fuller, and the flowers get larger. Mature plants are stunning. All sprout from a tuber and multiply freely if the conditions are right. Most prefer humus-rich soil with good drainage. All our plants are grown from seed that is open-pollinated, so expect some variability.

Dactylorhiza fuchsii Common spotted orchid Alpine Orchid

Ht. 50-70cm. Z4. This is the UK native wild Common Spotted orchid, which grows in neutral to alkaline soils that are often damp. It can be grown in grassland, the garden, or a pot. It has spikes of mauve pink flowers with darker spotting. It is a good beginner orchid as it will usually bulk up fairly quickly.

Dactylorhiza majilis Alpine Orchid
Ht. 50-70cm. Z4. Green leaves are sometimes spotted, and violet pink to purple flowers bloom late spring to early summer.

Epipactis helleborine
Ht.40-100cm. Z6. This is one of the few orchids that will self-sow. Flowers are usually greenish with a purple blush in spikes of up to 50 flowers. Rarely, pure white or dark purple forms show up in seedling colonies. Easy to grow.

Epipactis gigantea

Ht.50cm. Z6. This attractive orchid has 5-25 green to yellow flowers striped with purple veins on a loose raceme. The lip is distinctly lobed with bright yellow, purple, and orange markings..

Goodyera oblongifolia Rattlesnake‑plantain Orchid

Native. Fl.Ht. 20-30cm. Z6. Evergreen. Dark green oblong leaves, patterned with variable white markings, in a basal rosette. Inconspicuous flowers are greenish in a terminal spike. Prefers humus-rich soil in shade to semi-shade.

Pleiones

Pleiones is a genus of near-hardy orchids originating in the Himalayas and mountainous regions of China. Most species and hybrids produce their incredible flowers in spring. They grow in a variety of habitats, from moss-covered rocks to leaf litter under shrubs, but always in sites with excellent drainage.

For most, the rules of cultivation are simple: Do not overwater. In early spring, as the new roots emerge and once the plant has developed a root system, feed regularly with a well-balanced liquid fertilizer. Finally, a rest period is required during the winter with a low temperature of 0-4C for a time.

On the west coast many people are growing Pleione outdoors in well drained beds in sheltered conditions, as we do in our own garden. However, it is rather risky. The genus has minimal cultivation requirements which make them ideal for growing in the home, in a coldframe or in a cool greenhouse. If a mature pseudobulb is fed well it will produce two or more new pseudobulbs each year. The old one shrivels and should be discarded in fall. Most species will also produce a small bulbil atop the old pseudobulb which can be grown in two or three seasons to bloom size. Most species are easy to grow indoors or out (with protection) in very free draining humus rich soil (we generally use 40:40:20 peat and perlite and sand mix). Customers from east of the Rockies, we suggest having these shipped before your other plants. For those of you who make a trip to the Nursery, we have other species and hybrids that we are still multiplying to the point where we can sell them, so a few will be available. We will also have a large selection of the following available at the nursery in pots anytime.

Pleione albiflora `Pinchbeck Diamond'
Large flower of mauve pink with yellow keels and red spotting on the lip. Blooms very early.

Pleione formosana 'Blush of Dawn'
Pseudobulbs green, flowers are large creamy white flushed with pale pink and lip is marked yellow and brown.

Pleione Hybrids

Pleione Barcena
(P. formosana x P. praecox) This hybrid has deep pink flowers with deep yellow and red throat markings. It blooms in late fall or early winter and is a very reliable bloomer.

Pleione Tolima (P.speciosa X P.formosana)

A variable cross with mauve pink to very rose-purple flowers and the lip is most often marked with red and yellow. Usually two flowers per stem and often fragrant. One of the best.

Pleione Vesuvius( P.bulbocodioides X P. X confusa)

Large flowers of dark pink to mauve, lips well frilled and speckled and spotted with dark pink or red. Most clones have a yellow throat, and many are fragrant. This is one of the showiest and easiest ones to grow. It is a reliable doer.

Pleione `Volcanello' (P. Soufrière x P.bulbocodioides)
Purple-pink flowers with a red spotted lip and bright yellow keels.