Minnesota Native Wildflowers, Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden

	Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
	Common Name	Scientific Name	Plant Family	Garden Location	Prime Season
	Lesser Yellow Lady's-slipper	Cypripedium parviflorum Salisb. var. makasin formerly Cypripedium calceolus L. var. parviflorum	Orchis (Orchidaceae)	Not extant - historical plant	Late Spring
Other names and notes	The two forms of the Yellow Lady's-slipper differ in size. The larger, variety "pubescens", refers to the larger size of this variety compared to the smaller, variety makasin, which grows in mostly moist areas and was formerly present in the Garden (see historic photo below). The flower stems of both can be from 8 to 30" high with prominently ribbed oval leaves which mostly surround the stem. The long thin sepals are spirally twisted. The flower is 1 to 2" long with the yellow pouch from 3/4" to 1 1/8" long. The larger variety has flowers from 2 to 3 1/8" long and a pouch 1-1/8 to 2" long and the sepals are lighter than on variety makasin. The pouches of both varieties may show purple veins. There is usually one but may be two flowers on an inflorescence. Both varieties are native to Minnesota in the old woods band from SE to NW Minnesota. The former scientific name for this species was Cypripedium calceolus (L.) var. parviflorum.


Above: The pouch of the Lesser Yellow Lady's-slipper is almost an inch shorter than the larger variety and the twisted sepals are darker.

Above: A typical dense clump the the smaller variety of Yellow Lady's-slipper. Historic Photo - Immediately Below: A clump of Smaller Yellow Lady's-slipper in the Woodland Garden on June 6, 1957. Photo from a Kodachrome slide taken by Martha Crone. Photo courtesy Minnesota Historical Society, Martha Crone Collection.

Lesser Yellow Lady's-slipper historic photo

Notes: While the larger variety, C. parviflorum var. parviflorum, is indigenous to the Garden area, the smaller variety was introduced to the area. Eloise Butler first planted it in 1911 with plants obtained from Gillett's Nursery in North Carolina. Martha Crone planted it a number of times beginning in 1933, '34 and '36. She generally obtained her plants from wild areas - those in '33 from near Anoka. Cypripediums are difficult to grow via transplanting due to their root system. One must not expect to have a long-lived clump. The species was still present in the Garden at the time of Martha Crone's 1951 census, but died out sometime thereafter. Ken Avery replanted it in 1962 and it again died out. It has not been replanted in recent history.

In Minnesota the larger variety is more commonly found although the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources lists 59 counties in which the smaller variety has been located. Both grow in the "old woods" band north and east of a diagonal line from SE to NW Minnesota.

For an article on both Lady's-slippers in the Garden and some history see Orchids in the Garden by Cary George in the Archive - Educational section.

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References: Plant characteristics are generally from sources 15, 16, 30, 31, 33, W2 & W3. Distribution principally from W2 and also 31, 34 and W1. Planting history generally from 1, 4 & 4a. Other sources by specific reference. See Reference List for details.

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