Cypripedium cordigerum D.Don

Heart-shaped lip cypripedium (en)

Species

Angiosperms > Asparagales > Orchidaceae > Cypripedium

Characteristics

Plants 25-50 cm tall, with a short, stout rhizome. Stem erect, usually pubescent or glandular hairy, especially toward upper part, with several sheaths at base and 2-5 leaves above. Leaf blade elliptic or broadly elliptic, 10-15 × 4-10 cm, sparsely ciliate, apex acute or acuminate. Inflorescence terminal, 1-or rarely 2-flowered; peduncle ± with glandular hairs; floral bracts foliaceous, elliptic to lanceolate, 6-9 × 2-4 cm, pubescent on abaxial veins, apex acuminate; pedicel and ovary 2-4 cm, with dense glandular hairs. Flowers 9-10 cm in diam., usually with pale green to yellowish green sepals and petals and white lip; staminode often yellow spotted with red. Dorsal sepal broadly ovate, 2.5-3 × ca. 1.5 cm, adaxial base and abaxial surface pubescent, apex acuminate; synsepal elliptic-ovate, slightly narrower than dorsal sepal, abaxially pubescent, apex shallowly 2-lobed. Petals not twisted, linear-lanceolate, 2.5-3.5 × 0.7-0.9 cm, adaxial base pubescent, apex acuminate; lip deeply pouched, ellipsoid, dorsiventrally flattened, 2.5-3.5 cm, with a small mouth, outer surface glabrous, inner bottom hairy. Staminode suboblong, ca. 10 × 5 mm, base with a short stalk. Fl. Jun-Aug. 2n = 20.
More
An orchid. It grows to about 60 cm high. It has 2-5 leaves. They are well spaced along the stems. The leaves do not have stalks. They are about 15 cm long. They are oval to sword shaped. There are 1 or 2 flowers. The flowers are white or pale yellow. The flowers are 4-6 cm long.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.25 - 0.5
Root system rhizome
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

It is a temperate plant. It grows between 2000-3800 m altitude in Nepal. It grows in moist, shady places. It is a hardy plant.
Light 4-6
Soil humidity 5-7
Soil texture -
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 7-11

Usage

The tender leaves are cooked as a vegetable.
Uses medicinal
Edible leaves
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Plants can be grown from seed or by splitting of young buds.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) 30 - 365
Germination temperacture (C°) 18 - 21
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Flower

Cypripedium cordigerum flower picture by phuentsho (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Cypripedium cordigerum world distribution map, present in China, Nepal, and Pakistan

Conservation status

Cypripedium cordigerum threat status: Vulnerable

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:625683-1
WFO ID wfo-0000935276
COL ID 33J54
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Cypripedium cordigerum