Cypripedium calceolus, the true Eurasian Yellow Ladyslipper and type species for all of Cypripedioideae, is a fussy grower in Maryland in my experience. Fortunately, its hybrid with Cypripedium pubescens, Cypripedium Otto (W.Frosch 1991) is much more tolerant and retains much of the charm of the calceolus. The sepals and petals are dramatically dark and tightly twisted. The staminode is intermediate between the oval of calceolus and triangle of pubescens. It has the yellow staminode of pubescens rather than the white of calceolus. Perhaps a selfing will give us clones closer to the calceolus while retaining cultural forgiveness. This hybrid has performed well through 5 summers and winters and has doubled in growths. It resides in my arborvitae bed, a row of that evergreen grown as trees surrounded by a raised bed highly amended with Turface and Soil Perfector. The bed gets a heavy permanent mulch of pine needles and the plants get a yearly dose of BulbTone.
