''Cypripedium tibeticum'' is a species of

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

in section ''Cypripedium'' in the subsec. ''Macrantha'' It is native to

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...

Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...

, and Western

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(

Gansu Gansu (, ; alternately romanized as Kansu) is a province in Northwest China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeast part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibet ...

Guizhou Guizhou (; formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked province in the southwest region of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the province. Guizhou borders the autonomous region of Guangxi to t ...

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...

).Flora of China v 25 p 27, 西藏杓兰 xi zang shao lan, ''Cypripedium tibeticum''
/ref>Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
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Description

13-35 cm tall. Leaves 3, 7-15 × 3.3-7.2 cm, glabrous on both surfaces except towards the tips. Infloescence 1-flowered, produced usually before the leaves have fully developed; bract 5–10.5 cm long. Flower sub-nodding, very variable in colour; ovary glabrous or rarely slightly pubescent or papillose towards the apex, 2–3.2 cm long. Sepals 3–5.2 × 1.8-3 cm. Petals 3.6-6 × 1.4-2.5 cm. Labellum 3.5-6 cm long and wide, the margins of the mouth crimped all around, the outer surface usually wrinkled.

Distribution

Sikkim, Bhutan and western China (Xizang, Yunnan, Sichuan and possibly S. Gansu); open montane meadows, margins of coniferous and mixed woodlands, open limestone ledges and screes; 2300-4600 m. Flowers from May to July. These plants usually form large clumps or colonies.

Variation range

This species is notably variable across its distribution and sometimes it is hard to distinguish from other species such as ''

Cypripedium macranthos ''Cypripedium macranthos'', the large-flowered cypripedium, is a species of orchid. It is native to Belarus, Russia ( European Russia and Siberia), Mongolia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China (Hebei, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol ...

'' or Cypripedium calcicola, the main distinction from ''C. macranthos'' are the darker flower colour, especially when dried-pressed.

Natural hybridisation

Seven specimens collected in southeastern Xizang may suggest natural hybridisation with ''Cypripedium himalaicum''. This orchid is also a parent of ''Cypripedium'' ''× wenqingiae'', an hybrid between ''C. farreri'' and ''C. tibeticum''.

Cultivation

Together with its close relatives, this species replaces ''C. macranthos'' in southwestern China and the Himalayan region, and requires growing conditions similar to the latter in some respects. It differs in being more adapted to continental high mountain regions. Hence it needs some protection in winter, especially during frost-free periods, to maintain dormancy. It should not receive too much rain in winter. In summer, it needs constant watering and a fresh and cool atmosphere while receiving full light (avoid the burning sun around noon). It can acclimatise in gardens, but will not grow into big clumps nor become as per sistent as C. macranthos. In the wild it is found growing in grassland on limestone and should have a compost with a pH between 6 and 7. It is not a beginner's species. Mixes A, B, C, D (made with coarse sand and some oyster shells), and J. Mix A: One part loam pellets, one part Seramis (or comparable materials like pumice gravel), one part rotten wood, and one part coarse sand. File:Cypripedium tibeticum Orchi 142.jpg, Flower showing variation and plant habit. File:Cypripedium tibeticum.jpg, "Curtis's Botanical Magazine" vol. 132 (Ser. 4 no. 2) tab. 8070, M. S. del. ( = Matilda Smith, 1854–1926), J. N. Fitch lith. ( = John Nugent Fitch, 1840–1927) File:A naturalist in Western China - with vasculum, camera, and gun, being some account of eleven year's travel, exploration, and observation in the more remote parts of the flowery kingdom; (1913) (14595991019).jpg, Large number of specimens in a colony, 1913.

References

tibeticum Orchids of China Flora of Bhutan Flora of Sikkim Plants described in 1892 {{Cypripedioideae-stub