Calypso Bulbosa

[theroc1217]

From what I've been reading, Calypso bulbosa is a winter grower, whereas Arethusa Bulbosa is a summer grower, in 2 different genii. Has anyone else heard of Arethusa? It's in both of the orchid encyclopedias I've looked at recently.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Yes, I have heard of Arethusa bulbosa. Arethusa bulbosa and Calypso bulbosa are not synonyms of each other. They are similar looking, but they're not the same species.

Arethusa bulbosa is restricted to certain parts of the eastern side of the North American continent according to a distribution map I pulled up on the web. It is only found from Saskatchewan, Canada all the way to the east cost of Canada, and it follows along from the state of Minnesota to the east coast then down south to certain parts of the state of South Carolina here in the US.

It is not reported to be found in the following mid-eastern and southern states, however:

- Not found in West Virginia.
- Not found in Tennessee.
- Not found in Kentucky.
- Not found in Alabama.
- Not found in Arkansas.
- Not found in Iowa.
- Not found in Florida.
- Not found in Louisiana.
- Not found in Missouri.
- Not found in Mississippi.
- Not found in Georgia.

I don't know why this orchid follows along such a seemingly odd line of distribution.

My guess would be that it is restricted geographically by the northern portion of the Mississippi River and then the Ohio River; and it is also restricted to the east coast by the Appalachian Mountains.

[theroc1217]

There are some similar species to Arethusa, and I was thinking that some (amateur) gatherers may not notice the difference between the species and mislabel their specimens.

[ronaldhanko]

You mentioned gatherers. I trust that the plants you are growing were not "gathered" illegally. Here and in most states it is illegal to remove native plants from the wild.

[Aki_James]

I have heard of Arethusa bulbosa I believe its common name is Rose Pegonia. They do not grow around my area but I have seen them in the eastern provinces. It is a very commonly cultured garden or bog plant from native plant vendors though along with Blettila Striata (dont believe this is actually native though) and Calopogon tuberosus(Grass Pink Orchid). I too hope no one is gathering these from the wild especially when they are so readily available from vendors.

[theroc1217]

True, but often times they are found growing on private property. And if anyone had been cultivating them for long, they may have misidentified them.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

As an aside note...

Yes, Bletilla striata is not a native of North America. It is native to China.

Rose Pogonia, I believe would be scientifically known as Pogonia ophioglossoides.

Arethusa bulbosa is commonly known as Dragon's Mouth Orchid. Not to be confused with Dragon's Tongue Orchid, Habenaria rhodocheila.

I don't think it would be likely that someone would confuse Calypso bulbosa for Arethusa bulbosa.

Arethusa bulbosa does not have a single heart shaped leaf. In fact, Arethusa bulbosa does not have structures anyone would readily recognize as leaves while it is in bloom. Documentation of Arethusa bulbosa does state it grows a single, narrow leaf that is about 7" - 8" long and 1 cm wide after the plant is done blooming.

Arethusa bulbosa also appears to be a much larger plant than Calypso bulbosa is.

With Calypso bulbosa, the leaf does start growing in late fall and will continue to grow until mid to late winter. It is after the leaves have fully emerged, then, Calypso bulbosa blooms in the spring. At around mid to late spring, the leaf starts to die back. By the onset of summer, the leaf has died back completely, leaving behind however many tubers it produces; be it 1 or more.

I think this is worth mentioning about Calypso bulbosa...

I don't think this species is self fertile. Making selfings may be a waste of time. My recommendation is to make outcrosses if you're interested in breeding them. (Not 100% about this idea. This statement was made because I had a very difficult time seeing the embryo inside each of the seeds from the self cross I made. Maybe, they're just naturally tinier than the embryos of most other orchids, idk.)

Another thing...

If I'm not mistaken, Calypso bulbosa might possibly be a relatively short lived perennial compared to many orchids you know, such as Cymbidiums. This is according to a few sources of documentation on the web. I think the total lifespan of this species from protocorm to adult might be anywhere on the order of 10 - 12 years, maybe less in some cases, and that's all she wrote.

Oh yeah, and I recommend using organic fertilizer. I recommend fertilizing every week. I think they're heavy feeders.

[naoki]

Has anyone successfully propagated C. bulbosa asymbiotically? I've heard that they are pretty difficult.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by naoki

Has anyone successfully propagated C. bulbosa asymbiotically? I've heard that they are pretty difficult.

It has been done.

There are at least 2 people I'm aware of who has done it.

One person is in Germany. I only know him as "Berthold". If I'm not mistaken, he has visited the OB before, but very briefly. I see him more often on Terrestrial Orchids.

The other person is no longer with us, (if you catch my drift). This person is Roger H. Smith from the now defunct Kelsey Creek Labs (R.I.P.). I was about to have him sow some seeds of Calypso bulbosa, but by the time I was able to get around to doing so, he passed. I don't know if he left behind any kind of documentation as to what his protocol was for sowing Calypso bulbosa, though.

If I'm not mistaken people like using BM-2 terrestrial orchid media for Calypso bulbosa. I'm not sure if it has to be modified or not. The additive mentioned is coconut water. I also don't know if the seeds have to be treated for a hard frost before sowing or not. The protocol could be, (I'm making a big assumption here), similar to that of growing Cypripediums from seed, idk.

I guess the next best person to ask for assistance in sowing Calypso bulbosa from seed would be Bill Steele from Spangle Creek Labs.

If anyone's interested, here's a link to Berthold's work on Calypso bulbosa, here's the link:

Terrestrial Orchid Forum :: View topic - Calypso bulbosa

I believe "calypsogrower" is the same person who runs The Calypso Orchid Company.

"Calypsogrower" may have succeeded as well, but I have no way of knowing whether this is the case or not for certain.

[theroc1217]

I ended up getting mine from buggycrazy on the web. They arrived in good condition with instructions more or less amounting to what I've been told here. I'm just worried that they won't be cold enough right now. It's 63 in the room, but I think I can find a colder place.

From what I heard, buggycrazy is calypso grower's wife...