Cypripedium acaule (?) in situ - Red River Gorge, Kentucky

[My Green Pets]

Several Cypripedium species grow in the hills of Eastern Kentucky, and recently I was fortunate enough to discover a small population of what I believe to be Cyp. acaule while tromping through the forest in Red River Gorge. I am guessing it is Cyp. acaule because of the single pair of leaves and the leafless flower spike.

Hopefully, seeing where and how this plant grows in the wild will help me greatly improve my at-home cultivation skills!

A. Habitat. A steep, west-facing slope with a rocky ridge at the top. Plants were found growing in deep leaf litter. Soil underneath was very light and peaty with sand, full of evergreen needles and quite moist. Light was filtered, with few if any rays of direct light reaching the forest floor. Rhododendrons were found growing all around.


B. Two young plants with no evidence of flower spike. Perhaps they are still immature.


C. An individual growing alongside a sapling.


D. An individual, with flower stalk and seed pod, growing next to a large boulder.


E. Another view of the individual next to a boulder.


F. Close-up of flower remains and seed pod.


This is the first time I have ever come across an orchid in its natural habitat. Finding an individual with a seed pod was indeed a thrill, but now that I know where they are, I can make plans to return in the spring when they are in bloom!

[WhiteRabbit]

Awesome!

[RosieC]

Cool!

[Tindomul]

I love finding these!!

[Tindomul]

Hi, I can't tell which Cyp it is just from the leaves, wish I could though.

[PaphMadMan]

The leaves, bract and capsule all look just right for Cyp acaule to me. There is certainly no other Cyp in Kentucky it can be confused with.

[Ray]

When we lived in KY, the Red River Gorge was a very frequent camping preference for my wife and I - and our Irish Setter. (Nothing like a wet dog in the tent on a rainy night...). Those are definitely Cyp. acaule. I used to marvel at the numbers of them there.


Ray Barkalow
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[Hiester]

Both the pink and the yellow lady's slipper were common in the woodlands behind the house where I was raised. My father wouldn't let us go near them, claiming they were a rare woodland treasure (which was true, of course), thus we always admired them from afar.

[My Green Pets]

Originally Posted by Ray

When we lived in KY, the Red River Gorge was a very frequent camping preference...

I loved it. Being from Western KY, I had no idea what a treasure the eastern part of the state holds. It's absolutely gorgeous...no wonder the orchids like it there.

[Ray]

The Red River Gorge was my last time backpacking and camping:

We had been in DC with family the week before labor Day, and had planned to pack in on Friday and camp the weekend.

We got up at the crack of dawn and drove what turned out to be 14 hours west, getting to the park after dark. We were lucky to find a ranger who gave us a trail map just as he was leaving for the day.

We packed up, I stuck the plants I had gotten at Kensington Orchids under the car, stuffed the keys up the tailpipe. Away we went.

It had rained all week, and the forest was saturated. It was so dark - even with flashlights - that it was the jingling of the tags on the dog's collar that led us down the trail.

About a mile and a half in (about an hour later), we stopped to check the map, saw that the first possible campsite was another mile in - IF it was not unoccupied, otherwise we'd have had to hike another 3 miles....

So we gave up, turned around, hiked an hour back to the car, and drove the remaining 4 hours to Louisville.

The "perfect" day: 18 hours of driving, with a "break" in the middle to take a 2-hour hike in a soaking forest in the dark with packs. Damn that bed felt good.