Eastern Fairy Slipper (Calypso bulbosa): Tiny Orchid Jewel

Eastern Fairy Slipper (Calypso bulbosa), also called Bulbed Calypso, is a tiny, terrestrial orchid native to cool, moist forests across the Northern Hemisphere. It produces a single, exquisite, slipper-shaped flower — pink-purple with a white, yellow-bearded lip — on a short stem above a single basal leaf. Blooming in spring, it's a rare, protected gem of the woodland floor.

Taxonomic Information