Showy Lady Slipper....A Garden of Pink and a Strawberry Moon

June is Lady Slipper season in the "north country". These rare beauties are fragile plants and grow with a certain type of fungus in the soil that is needed to germinate. We were lucky enough to be taken to the area where they grow 20 years ago on Father's Day. Every Father's Day weekend for the last 20 years, we have enjoyed these special orchids and it's a tradition that Joe enjoys as much as I do. The Showy Lady slipper (Cypripedium reginae) is the Minnesota state flower. In addition to the lady slippers, there are also other bog plants like the white and pink ones in the third photo above. 

The peonies bloomed this week, and the garden is starting to have color. The pollen  subsided and we were able to put the awning up.  

This weekend we can enjoy the strawberry moon and summer solstice. 

The June moon was known as the Strawberry Moon to early Native American tribes, who measured time by things like the moon. The full moon marked the season of strawberries as it still does. 

Enjoy the weekend!

Debbie

Showy Lady's-slipper (Cypripedium reginae)

On Father's Day weekend, we always take a ride to the bog in the hopes we will find the 

Showy Lady's-slipper.

The plant has become increasingly rare due to over collecting and habitat reduction, so each year we hope and pray that we will find the "lady" at the bog. It has a tall, leafy stem that bears 1-2 white-petaled flowers with a brilliant pink pouch, blooming in late June and into July. It is found in constantly moist habitats, including cedar swamps and cedar glades. It prefers a pH near neutral and some sunlight. 

The Sacred Slipper

Ojibway Legend tells of the great courage of a girl, who saves her people from illness. The girl knows she must journey to the next village, to get the healing herb mash-ki-ki for her people, who have all fallen ill.
After lining her moccasins with rabbit fur, she braves a raging snowstorm and crosses a dark frozen lake, to reach the village. Then, rather than waiting for morning, she sets out for home, while the villagers sleep; determined to help her people. During her trek through the snow, she loses her moccasins and her bare feet are cut by icy shards; bleeding with every step, until she reached her home.
The next Spring, beautiful Lady’s Slippers bloom from the place where her moccasins were lost, and from every spot her injured feet touched.
This is the story of how the Lady’s Slipper came to be…