I use to go looking for them when I was a little girl. Are lady slippers endangered? That section is getting left alone now. In Nova Scotia, this orchid is associated with gypsum bedrock and it is found only at six locations with only two to 500 individuals at each site. I am glad we did not let the young kids pick it, especially knowing now that they should not be picked. We didn’t know what it was and my daughter typed a rather vulgar description into her phone (based on what the flower looked like) to try and determine what it was. while Turkey hunting in Hancock Co Tenn. Haven’t been back to check but fear the Lupine and Lady Slippers are long gone, a pity for the little girls and boys that reside there today. Showy lady's slipper orchid (Cypripedium reginae) - Also known as the queen's lady's slipper.Its leaves are large and its blooms have white sepals and petals with a pink to magenta pouch. We have always left these plants alone. Growing up in Pennsylvania the woods behind our house had lady slippers. To my delight it survived and bloomed for quite a few years, and then disappeared. As much as I’d love to turn that section between the camp and the water into lawn, I won’t because of the precious Lady Slippers that grow there. As a child growing up in York, Maine, the woods was full of the beautiful pink slipper. It left a traumatic, and lasting impression on me. I grew up in NH and was told not to pick them. I think they’re amazing! I loved wild flowers then and I still do now. [I’m 87]. When I was a child my friends and I used to explore the fields and woods in our neighborhood. Most species have one or two flowers on a stem about 30 to 60 cm (12 to 24 inches) tall. Learn more! Spring was a rather magical time back then, Lupine bloomed by the hundreds, like blue clouds and the pink Lady Slippers appeared. (from Hopkinsville, KY). They are pretty. I was allowed as a child to pick one lady slipper each summer to put in a vase and admire. I always felt bad when we were announced the WINNER! We usually see about half a dozen plants each year. I live in Douglas Ma and three years ago a lady slipper just appeared in front of our shed. Updated 2015 . It was a great place to grow up and articles like this bring an aging man back to childhood. They did get leaves but never bloomed. There used to be some Lady Slippers growing in nearby woods but I have not seen them the last few years. Was very excited to see the wild pink lady slippers in and around the hike at The Flume gorge in N.H. I could not find them & I have never run across them in many years. Cypripedium reginae, known as the showy lady's slipper, pink-and-white lady's-slipper, or the queen's lady's-slipper, is a rare lady's-slipper orchid native to northern North America. In the early 1990’s, I would walk through the woods behind our home, with my sons to the bus stop at the end of the street in York ME. Any suggestions to keep it around forever? I am incredibly fortunate to have three separate clumps of Lady Slippers in a wooded section of my property in Maine. am 74 years old. I grew up in Maine in the late 70’s-80’s and played in my grandparents woods that went from the road all the way down to the shore. Lady’s slippers are found throughout Eurasia and the Americas, and some species are cultivated. My mother taught school in Jackson and Bartlett, NH. Lady’s slipper orchids are usually terrestrial, though some are epiphytic or grow on rocks. Once established, lady slipper plants will propagate on their own and live for many years if left undisturbed. We lived in Windham for 13 years and our home abutted conservation land. They emerge and flower in New England forests between the months of May and July. Thank you for the story from the Native People as to why will have this great flower. Grew up in N.H. And always enjoyed seeing the wild flowers. It’s rare and needs to be protected.” I was sad, but also extremely excited about my find. I’ve had lots of surprises this Spring and Summer with all of the beautiful flowers blossoming, that the previous owner had planted. About 6 would grow in an old growth white pine forest off of Stackpole Rd. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/plant/ladys-slipper, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources - Lady's Slipper. We never did, are visit was for a week and we had counted over thirty. And I was told when I was a child that it was illegal to pick them and to this day, my mother continues to tell me this. 🙂. Did you ever wonder “Are lady slippers endangered?” or “Is it illegal to pick a lady slipper?” Let us know! I was sharing that information with my daughter today, I thought maybe it was just something grown-ups said!! Another flower that we have seen dwindle in our area is the mayflower, so sad not to find these anymore, maybe someday. Today, April 27, 2019, I now have 10 getting ready to come up. They are illegal to pick or transplant. When we were young, my Mom had us make stick fences around them in our town forrest. A neighbor tried to transplant them on a number of different occasions, but the plants never successfully took/re-blossomed. Though it is not recommended to collect and transplant lady slipper … I grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts and as a child my friends and I loved to play in the woods. When I was a youngster, I remember seeing just one and only one beautiful pink Lady Slipper growing in the woods in back of my house. On our walks in Cole Harbour we see a few of the pink-purple ones around the edges of forests. Growing up in Granby (CT) our property included a 1+acre farming property where the West Branch of the Salmon Brook entered the Main Branch of the We also have a lot of gorgeous wildflowers. Another note: they also come in white and yellow as well as pink. Everything she told me about plants has always turned out to be the Gospel truth & so I believed her then and still do. He always told As a child in Seekonk, MA, was told they were illegal to pick. What a loss! My husband dug them up with huge soil around them and transplanted them about 10-15 ft away from original area. Pink lady's slipper is a large, showy wildflower belonging to the orchid family. There are a few every year in the woods adjacent to “Five Mile Pond” in Springfield, MA. Child in the 50s/60s in Somersworth NH. I have never picked any since. We purchased a small caretakers house from a larger parcel of land that was being broken up. there used to be many lady slippers growing on all the islands in between the water. In my backyard and behind my property, there are hundreds growing every spring. Once established, lady slipper plants will propagate on their own and live for many years if left undisturbed. Interesting note: Ladyslipper s the State Flower of Minnesota. Only the Ram’s Head variety ( cypripedium arietinum, pictured opposite ) is listed as an endangered species pursuant to s. 12 of the Endangered Species Act. From NE and formerly Massachusetts. I’m fortunate in that I have them growing up at the head of my driveway surrounded by star flower, foam flower, and false lily-of-the-valley. A lovely lady slipper specimen in Raymond, New Hampshire. The plant is considered critically endangered. The Forest Service map shows the range is about 1/3 of the United States. Endangered? We were always told it was illegal to pick them. I had quite a few in the woods behind my home until the neighborhood kids with their ATV’s ran them all down. My parents told me that it was illegal to pick the Lady slippers so we never did. I cried, but never picked one again, and dutifully told all the kids I knew not to pick them. As a child growing up in Fitchburg Ma I came across lady slippers and jack in-the-pulpits on many occasions. On the other hand, I have never seen one outside of New England. The Small White Lady’s-slipper was already assessed as endangered when the Endangered Species Act took effect in 2008. I picked one and brought it home to my mother. Alas, during a storm a large tree fell over the area and we never saw them there again. We used to hike in our “town forest” in Needham, Mass. We always picked them as a bouquet for our Moms. A little while later she said she had to go to the store … with her shovel. Threatened and Endangered Information: This plant is listed by the U.S. federal government or a state. In addition to inspiring folklore, lady slipper roots were also widely used by Native Americans as medicinal herbs. I live in Nova Scotia, Canada and as a child, I always picked a few Lady Slippers for my mother on her birthday on June 1st. We’ve had over 35 in one patch with others here and there in the woods. They were white and pink. I just found a beautiful patch on the side of the road in Temple, Georgia. Every May my mom would send us to find them. You know they are illegal to pick.” I told her where I’d seen them and that I didn’t know I was breaking the law. It was always so exciting to see one. Love to see them in bunches and I wish the entire world was covered in lady slippers! They grew on my land when I had 8 acres of land, and love the beauty, of them, lived in Sutton, NH, on Corporation Hill Rd. My parents and grandparents repeatedly told us to NEVER pick these flowers, or dig them up for transplanting. My Grandfather believed we are stewards not owners of the land. I’m in Pembroke, Massachusetts. I remember always looking for them arriving for the summer. There are several plants in Jones Forest, Billerica, MA. I look forward each year when they blossom. I live in western North Carolina. me we couldn’t pick lady slippers because they were an endangered species. There are several pink ones I enjoy looking at in various places. Others, like the common Pink Lady’s Slipper, are listed as “special concern” under the Native Plant Protection Act. Vermont Wildflower Farm, Charlotte, VT. 50 years ago when we bought our home in NYState, my wife, who was familiar with lady slippers from her days as a student at Wheaton College, Norton, MA, ordered some to plant in the woods behind our house. The small white lady’s slipper is a much rarer variety; since 1992 it has been designated by Manitoba as “Endangered.” It is found in unbroken prairie and wet meadows, in three main locations. I also was told that it was illegal to pick them. They are right on a side of a path, I hope they make it! We don’t know where or why…. Kentucky. It is such a treat and a joy to see one of them, just like it is to see any rare wild animal! My three brothers and I were told they were very special and against the law to pick them. i want to pot a few up from my direct property. Any ideas? When I moved from Maryland to Connecticut, pink lady slippers bloomed in the woods behind our house. The only species that are protected in Maine are those listed as rare or endangered; (you can see a list of Maine’s rare and endangered plants on the maine.gov website). Now as an adult I am always excited to see lady’s slippers in the wild. Get away from the over crowding , pollution , urban expanse and the like and most plants are perfectly happy I find. I see them every year in Canfield woods on the Deep River side. Never found them anywhere else. We saw one today in Rhode Island. It’s legal to sell them now. We were lucky! We had lady slippers along our long driveway down to Torch Lake Michigan. I would buy seeds and grow them on my property close to the same area if I thought I could do it. Growing up in Maine, we were told never to pick ladies slippers as it was against the law. I grew up on Cape Cod (Osterville) and remember seeing this beautiful wildflower many times while out walking. We were taught to pinch them off. We would pick them but it wasn’t until I was older when I was told they shouldn’t be picked because it takes so long for them to propagate. I grew up in North Dartmouth MA in the 1950s. To this day I look forward to seeing her come back every year, although some years she makes me anxious because I do not think she survived our harsh winter, this being one of those years. So beautiful! I grew up in Andover, MA in the late 50’s and there was a lovely woods we loved to play in where many lady slippers grew, even then we knew those were not to be picked. I just thought I’d share ???? We loved seeing the lady slipper flowers but had been warned by our parents that it was illegal to pick them. Grew up in CT, found a few in the woods behind our house in the 60’s and 70’s, always shady where they were,, Loved those and a bleeding heart plant my mother had in the front yard,. Yes, they are endangered! We live in Dingmans Ferry, Pa and have 7 in bloom now more than in the past. I live in Wolcott Ct and on our walking trail I’ve found 2 Lady Slippers growing this spring and was quite surprised to see them.. Each student was allowed to cut one, and only one, ladyslipper blossom, but never all the flowers in a particular area. I live in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, and I have many of these beautiful little orchids growing in the tall pines of my 73 acre property. Now I know why. As a child in the 1960’s living in Edgewood, RI, my family would go on day trips to Arcadia Park in western RI. She informed me that it was illegal (first I knew of it) and my older brothers added that I would probably go to jail! I wish I could attach my pictures! Cypripedium candidum The Small white lady’s-slipper (Cypripedium candidum)is a provincially and nationally endangered orchid, occuring in Manitoba, Ontario and fifteen American states. Ive just recently learned to recognize the plant by the leaves, without the famous bloom. I was terrified of picking one for fear I would end up in jail!! Back in the 40’s, sisters and I picked a few for Decoration Day baskets and earlier for adding to May Baskets. Since then what was once 1 couple of Trillium plants have turned into at least 100. The fungus breaks open the lady slipper seed and attaches to it, passing on the food and nutrients needed for it to flourish. Though they are named for their resemblance to a delicate pair of feminine slippers in hues of pink, white, or variegated colors, the lady slipper flower is a hardy perennial that is able to withstand the brutal New England winters. Always a thrill when I came across one. Last year, I had 5. when I was a child growing up in Wilton,Connecticut, I was told that it was illegal to pick Lady Slippers and I envisioned the Lady Slipper police hiding behind trees in our woods waiting to catch me picking one! Some species of lady slipper are listed as endangered or threatened in New England. While camping at Trout Pond in Lost River WV I was lucky enough to see a lady slipper blooming 5/9/17. My wife and I found ONE along woods road here in PA. Maybe the constant rain has allowed the fungus to flourish to feed the orchid. We were clearing a lot in Gilford, NH to build our house and found many pink lady slippers. They have been there for over 50 years. 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