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California lady's slipper facts for kids

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California lady's slipper
Cypripedium californicum.jpg
1891 illustration from
Curtis's Botanical Magazine"
Conservation status
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Cypripedioideae
Genus: Cypripedium
Species:
C. californicum
Binomial name
Cypripedium californicum
A.Gray (1868)
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The California lady's slipper (scientific name: Cypripedium californicum) is a special kind of orchid. It belongs to a group of orchids often called "lady's slippers" because of their unique shape. This beautiful flower grows naturally in the western United States.

What Does It Look Like?

Cypripedium californicum - Flickr 004
Blooming in Klamath Mountains, Del Norte County, California.

This plant often grows in big groups. Each stem can have as many as 21 flowers! It can grow to be over a meter (about 3 feet) tall. Its leaves are arranged along the stem and are pleated, like a fan. The petals and sepals (parts that look like petals) are usually greenish-brown. The small pouch-shaped part of the flower, which gives it the "slipper" name, is pure white. Sometimes, it has tiny pink spots.

Where Does It Grow?

The California lady's slipper only grows in a small area. You can find it in the mountains of southwestern Oregon and northern California. It especially likes to grow near woodland streams. These streams are often found in open coniferous forests, which are forests with trees like pines and firs.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Zapatillas de dama de California para niños

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