Featured – Orchids of Alberta - North American Orchid Conservation Center

Calypso bulbosa var. americana

These small, brightly-colored orchids can carpet a mossy forest floor. Fairy Slippers are one of the earliest orchids to flower and hint at things to come later in the year. This was taken at one of my favorite orchid spots near Canmore, Alberta.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis

The Spotted Coral Root is one of 3 leafless orchids found in Alberta. Easy to see how this orchid gets its name, with spots not just on the lip, but scattered on other parts of the flower. This variety, occidentalis, has the telltale flared distal portion of the lip.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis

I had never seen this many Spotted Coral Roots before. I originally found this site a few years ago, and checked it earlier this year with my friend Jason from Melbourne. At that time, there were about 20 or 30 stems just emerging. A couple of weeks later, my wife Catherine and I counted more than 500 flowering stems in an area about 25 m². Absolutely amazing!

Photo © Ben Rostron

Corallorhiza striata

The Striped Coral Root is by far the most striking of the leafless orchids found in Alberta with its sparkling texture and color variation in shades of orange or magenta. 2016 was a great year in the foothills west of Calgary- they were everywhere, including along trails where I've never seen them before.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Cypripedium parviflorum

Yellow Lady’s Slippers are very common across Alberta, and elsewhere in North America. This species shows a large variation in color (some darker, lighter) and size (larger, smaller), and can form massive clumps with over a 100 stems. At the Wagner Natural Area west of Edmonton, plants literally carpet the forest floor.
Photo ©Ben Rostron

Photo © Ben Rostron

Cypripedium parviflorum

This Yellow Lady’s Slipper is growing in my backyard garden in Edmonton, Alberta. Rescued from the middle of an active ATV trail beside a railroad, this orchid is commercially available from seed and easy to grow in cultivation.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Cypripedium montanum

The Mountain Lady’s Slipper, the largest of the 4 species of lady’s slippers found in Alberta, is typically found at higher elevations in the mountains near the Continental Divide. The flowers vary in color from dark brown, through green, and dark yellow. This species commonly carries 2 flowers but robust specimens can have 3, or rarely 4, flowers per stem. One of our most impressive native orchids.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Platanthera orbiculata

The Pad Leaved Orchid is widely distributed across Canada and the US and one of my favorites. I photographed this one at the 2014 Native Orchid Conference in Itasca State Park, Minnesota. I really like how the icy-green colors stand out from the background.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Platanthera orbiculata

This Pad Leaved Orchid appeared beside the Marl Pond Trail, within the Wagner Natural Area, for the 1st time in 2008. It flowered for 3 more years, and has not been seen since. This trail has been monitored for over 25 years – perhaps in another 20 years this plant will flower again!

Photo © Ben Rostron

Arethusa bulbosa

In 2015, the Dragon’s Mouth Orchid was discovered growing in the far northern corner of Alberta - extending its range from Alberta, east to Newfoundland, and south all the way to South Carolina.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Neottia banksiana

The Northwestern Twayblade is one of the rarest orchids in Alberta, reported only a handful of times in the mountains of Waterton National Park. It was quite a thrill to find 3 of these hidden in a huge patch of Heart Leaved Twayblades (Neottia cordata) while hiking with my family.

Photo © Ben Rostron

Neottia convallarioides

The Broad Lipped Twayblade is very rare in Alberta, found only in the southern half of the foothills. Although I am still searching for it here, I found this large patch of beauties in California at the Native Orchid Conference in 2013.

Malaxis monophyllos var. brachypoda

The White Adder’s Mouth is one of the smallest orchids in Alberta with flowers that are tiny- barely 2mm across! This plant was found in the Wagner Natural area west of Edmonton.

Galearis rotundifolia

Although the Round Leaf Orchid (syn. Amerorchis rotundifolia) is rare in the US, large populations thrive throughout Canada in soggy, wet habitats. At the Wagner Natural Area, they literally cover the ground making it hard to walk without stepping on them. Thank goodness for the path!

Galearis rotundifolia

The Round Leaf Orchid is known for its variable lip color patterns and it is always a thrill to find rare forms of this orchid. Sometimes the typical spots may be absent, as on the white-lipped color form with lilac sepals and petals (var. immaculata), or replaced with broad, longitudinal stripes on the lip (var. lineata). All three forms can be found in the Wagner Natural Area west of Edmonton, Alberta.

Galearis rotundifolia

Invite the Round Leaf Orchid to your home this holiday season. This orchid-gami model is a bit challenging, so we have included some general instructions and a cutting diagram with the template. Download the Round Leaf Orchid!

BEN ROSTRON, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA

Alberta, one of the three Prairie Provinces in western Canada, may be considered the “frozen north” by some, but enjoys the highest number of sunny days in Canada, with up to 18 hours of daylight in the summer. Rich in deposits of oil, natural gas and minerals, with scenery that is internationally acclaimed, the Province has over 2 dozen native orchids growing in a wide variety of habitats. This month photographer Ben Rostron shares his favorite orchid hunting grounds, including the Wagner Natural Area, protected land established to preserve the provinces' biological diversity, and Waterton National Park, where the prairies of Alberta meet the peaks of the Rocky Mountains. Lace up your boots and let's get started -- we have a lot of ground to cover!

Ben Rostron is a Professor in the Department of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Alberta. His research area is regional groundwater flow and the large-scale movement of water, oil, and natural gas in basins. Currently he is focused on characterizing and monitoring geological CO2 storage, and is a research advisor for the Aquistore Geological CO2 storage project. Ben is also the founder of Isobrine Solutions, a University of Alberta spinoff company.

His hobbies include photography and hunting for native orchids not just in Alberta, but throughout North America and beyond- recent trips have taken him to Australia and China. His keen eye and attention to detail serve him well as an accredited American Orchid Society Judge. Back home, Ben still finds time to nurture a small collection of Phalaenopsis species that includes amboinensis, bellina, and violacea.

To see more of Ben’s orchid photos, visit his Flickr site, and you can download a Round Leaf Orchid orchid-gami here.

Featured – Orchids of Alberta

Calypso bulbosa var. americana

Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis

Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis

Corallorhiza striata

Cypripedium parviflorum

Cypripedium parviflorum

Cypripedium montanum

Platanthera orbiculata

Platanthera orbiculata

Arethusa bulbosa

Neottia banksiana

Neottia convallarioides

Malaxis monophyllos var. brachypoda

Galearis rotundifolia

Galearis rotundifolia

Galearis rotundifolia

BEN ROSTRON, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA

Stay up to date with NAOCC

Subscribe to the NAOCC Newsletter!