A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 Pink Lady Slippers

Hi!
M'kay, i got permission to grab a Pink Lady Slipper from Orange N.H. hillsides. So ya, i grabbed it bare root, and i put it in a pot with some of the soil that was around it. I figured that the fungus that it needs to grow and multiply has already infected the roots, so it would survive just fine in a pot inside. It gets partial sun for 2 hours a day, and spends the rest of its time in ambient light from the window. It is in a mixture of peat, orchid mix, pearlite, sand, and pine needles.

Is there anything else i should know about this endangered plant? Does it have a dormancy period? Does it need to be fed? does it sprout any more than one flower? I heard a rumor that it will smell like a gym sock in full bloom; but i also heard that it smells really sweet of necter so it can trap bumble bees and the bee has to fight its way out, but in the process it gets covered in pollin, which goes into the other lady slippers, and that's how they propegate *gasp for breath* wow talk about a runon lol.

Thanks!

hi phoebe.
alls i could find in my houseplant book is lady slippers prefer in direct light & they propagate by division, lady-slipper makes offsets; divide only when pot is crowded.their heavy feeders, use special orchid fertilizer. & you can provide humidity by setting the plant on pebbles in a tray of water. keep the water level below the top of the pebbles.

if you go to [gardening] & look in common names. orchids are there. & even another site to check out. good luck with it

Thank you very much Sibyl ^.^ The flower died, but i think the flowering season is over. All the Lady Slippers behind my boyfriend's house have already lost their flowers n stuff. So ya ^.^ i suppose that's okay.

Thanks again