Fairy Slipper (Calypso bulbosa)

Calypso bulbosa, the Fairy-slipper orchid, is without doubt one of our most beautiful natives and is found from Alaska all the way across Canada and in the northernmost United States, including the Pacific Northwest, the upper Great Lakes area and northern New England.

The plant is almost always found in rather dark forests where its bright pink color stands out and is easily seen, even though the plant and flower are very small, the plant usually about 20 cm or less and the flowers about 3 cm.

There are some variations, but the plant is usually single flowered and usually has a single leaf that persists after the flower is finished. It is relatively common in our area and we have almost always found it when hiking in the spring in the North Cascades.

It's common name is Hider-of-the-North, a very appropriate name both because of its small size and because it is so small,but when it is happy it will often form very large stands

There are actually four varieties of this orchid, one variety found only in Japan and another found across northern Eurasia. The other two are found in North America, varieties americana and occidentalis.

Calypso bulbosa var. americana, the Eastern Fairy Slipper, is the more common variety and the only variety found east of the Rocky Mountains. It is easily distinguished by its yellow beard and white lip.

Calypso bulbosa var. occidentalis, the Western Fairy Slipper, is found only in the Cascade mountain range and west of the Rockies in Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho and Montana. It has a white beard and a lip that heavily spotted with brownish-purple.  It is, in our area,by far the more common variety and the one we have seen most often.