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Cypripedium formosanum
Also called Formosan Lady's Slipper
Formosa's lady's slipper is a terrestrial orchid native to the mountain forests and bogs of central Taiwan, grown for its white to pink flowers. It needs cool, moist conditions and is hard to keep in cultivation outside its native climate.
The Formosan lady's slipper or beautiful cypripedium, Cypripedium formosanum, is a species of orchid endemic to Taiwan.
This species is restricted to the central mountains of Taiwan, where it grows in several types of habitat in mountain forests and bogs. It is associated with species of ferns, Epimedium, Trillium, and Podophyllum, and Diphylleia grayi. It is also cultivated, being attractive and easy to grow and propagate. This is especially true of in vitro efforts as researchers have been able to calculate an ideal Germination rate, 90 days after planting (DAP), which can help address the population decline issues within this species. Furthermore, the IUCN Red List suggests specific conservation actions for this species in order to reduce the harms they face such as climate change and human disturbance to their natural habitat.
Typically, this species begins flowering in April and May in mountain forests due to being in damp, open places. After successful pollination, "ovule development and seed formation" begin in the ovary occurring between 0 DAP and 240 DAP with ideal germination rate being at 90 DAP. This is due to the placenta remaining attached to the yellowish white seeds, which are still moist, but if germination is prolonged, to about 135 DAP, results are poor. Therefore, timing of seed collection is an important factor to consider, especially for In vitro efforts, if researchers wish to cultivate this species. These findings could also be applied to ex situ conservation efforts, as seed collection, artificial propagation, and reintroduction are some of the goals of this approach.
Pink lady's slipper · Ram's head lady's slipper · Lady's-slipper orchid · California lady's slipper · White lady's-slipper · Dickinson's lady's slipper · Elegant Cypripedium · Clustered lady's slipper · Yellow Cypripedium · Franchet's Cypripedium · Spotted lady's slipper · Henry's Cypripedium
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cypripedium formosanum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
