Cypripedium tibeticum

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Cypripedium tibeticum
Cypripedium tibeticum 1.jpg
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Cypripedioideae
Genus: Cypripedium
Species:
C. tibeticum
Binomial name
Cypripedium tibeticum
King ex Rolfe (1892)
Synonyms[1][2]
  • Cypripedium corrugatum Franch. (1894)
  • Cypripedium corrugatum var. obesum Franch. (1894)
  • Cypripedium macranthos var. tibeticum (King ex Rolfe) Kraenzl. (1897)
  • Cypripedium langrhoa Costantin (1919)
  • Cypripedium lanuginosum Schltr. 1919
  • Cypripedium compactum Schltr. (1922) illegitimate
  • Cypripedium froschii Perner 1999
  • Cypripedium tibeticum var. froschii (Perner) Eccarius 2009

Cypripedium tibeticum is a species of orchid in section Cypripedium in the subsec. Macrantha[3] It is native to Bhutan, Sikkim, and Western China (Gansu, Guizhou, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan).[1][2]

Description[]

13-35 cm tall. Leaves 3, 7-15 × 3.3-7.2 cm, glabrous on both surfaces except towards the tips. Infloescence 1-flowered, produced usually before the leaves have fully developed; bract 5–10.5 cm long. Flower sub-nodding, very variable in colour; ovary glabrous or rarely slightly pubescent or papillose towards the apex, 2–3.2 cm long. Sepals 3–5.2 × 1.8-3 cm. Petals 3.6-6 × 1.4-2.5 cm. Labellum 3.5-6 cm long and wide, the margins of the mouth crimped all around, the outer surface usually wrinkled.[3]

Distribution[]

Sikkim, Bhutan and western China (Xizang, Yunnan, Sichuan and possibly S. Gansu); open montane meadows, margins of coniferous and mixed woodlands, open limestone ledges and screes; 2300-4600 m. Flowers from May to July.[3] These plants usually form large clumps or colonies.

Variation range[]

This species is notably variable across its distribution and sometimes it is hard to distinguish from other species such as Cypripedium macranthos or Cypripedium calcicola, the main distinction from C. macranthos are the darker flower colour, especially when dried-pressed.[4]

Natural hybridisation[]

Seven specimens collected in southeastern Xizang may suggest natural hybridisation with Cypripedium himalaicum.[4] This orchid is also a parent of Cypripedium × wenqingiae, an hybrid between C. farreri and C. tibeticum.

Cultivation[]

Together with its close relatives, this species replaces C. macranthos in southwestern China and the Himalayan re gion, and requires growing conditions similar to the latter in some respects. It differs in being more adapted to continental high mountain regions. Hence it needs some protection in winter, es pecially during frost-free periods, to maintain dormancy. Also, it should not receive too much rain in winter. In summer it needs constant watering and a fresh and cool atmosphere while receiving full light (avoid the burning sun around noon). It can acclimatise in the garden, but will not grow into big clumps nor become as per sistent as C. macranthos. In the wild it is found growing in grassland on limestone and should have a compost with a pH between 6 and 7. It is not a beginner's species. Mixes A, B, C, D (made with coarse sand and some oyster shells), and J.[4]

Mix A: One part loam pellets, one part Seramis (or comparable materials like pumice gravel), one part rotten wood, and one part coarse sand.

Mix Formulae
Mix A One part loam pellets, one part Seramis (or comparable materials like pumice gravel), one part rotten wood, and one part coarse sand.
Mix B Pure washed pumice gravel or lava gravel 3-8 mm diameter.
Mix C Pure ungraded pumice gravel (unwashed).
Mix D Four to five parts fine dune sand (from inland dunes) and one part fen soil (muck). Add just enough fen soil to make the sand dark grey. With calcareous-growing species, if lime-free sand is used, powder with agricultural lime (preferably dolomitic) over the surface every autumn.
Mix J Two parts gravel, one part perlite, and one part fine fir bark. To lift the pH into the neutral range, if needed, add ½ part oyster shells.

  • Flower showing variation and plant habit.

  • "Curtis's Botanical Magazine" vol. 132 (Ser. 4 no. 2) tab. 8070, M. S. del. ( = Matilda Smith, 1854–1926), J. N. Fitch lith. ( = John Nugent Fitch, 1840–1927)

  • Large number of specimens in a colony, 1913.

References[]

  1. ^ a b Flora of China v 25 p 27, 西藏杓兰 xi zang shao lan, Cypripedium tibeticum
  2. ^ a b Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  3. ^ a b c Frosch, Werner; Cribb, Phillip (2013). Hardy Cypripedium: Species, Hybrids and Cultivation. Kew Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84246-464-9.
  4. ^ a b c Cribb, Phillip; Kew, Royal Botanic Gardens (1997). The Genus Cypripedium. Timber Press. ISBN 978-0-88192-403-9.
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