Larch Hill Orchids

The plants shown in the photos are actually only two plants in the beginning. They were seed propagated plants from the Vermont Lady Slipper Company. Initially they were grown in a deep soil bed until they reached blooming size. At that point I purchased a large plastic storage box and buried in the ground up to the rim. I then put about 5 -6 inches of brick sand (brick sand is s and that has been washed to remove the fine particles leaving a rather rough sand) into the box followed by 6 inches of compost followed by six inches of brick sand and so on until the box was filled just below the rim. A layer of moderately large rounded aquarium gravel was then spread over the top and then the clean, washed Cypripedium Reginae roots were spread out on the aquarium gravel. The surface was then covered with a good layer of living moss. When planting was completed, the soil was temporarily scraped away from the outside all around the box and a number 3/8 inch hole were randomly drilled all around upper several inches to prevent a surface of standing water after heavy rains or melting snow and ice. One plant now has 16 crowns (stems) and the other has eight. Most of the flowering stems produce two blooms with a rarer case of three. Every fall I broadcast some 5-10-5 fertilizer over the whole synthetic bog garden bed.

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