In mid June we walked amongst a rare display of thousands of wild, Showy Lady’s Slipper Orchids. These breathtaking flowers are located in a bog at Purdon Conservation Area, just west of Lanark.
This is Canada’s largest colony of this species of Orchid, with more than 10,000 of the 16,000 or so plants bursting into delicate pink and white bloom each year between mid June and early July.

We enjoyed a leisurely walk along the 400 meter boardwalk through the heart of the colony where we were told that even though the surface of the bog looks like a meadow, we would sink to our knees should we step off the walkway. We took their word for it.

Purdon Conservation Area exists, thanks to the care and dedication of Joe Purdon. In the late 1930’s he discovered a few dozen plants growing in the swamp on his property. He took it upon himself to become a steward of his wetland by learning about and conserving this natural wonder that he had discovered. With patience and dedication that spanned over fifty years, this Conservation Pioneer grew the small colony of a few dozen plants into the thousands of blooms we were witness to.

To fully appreciate the scope of this achievement, it is necessary to understand the characteristics of the Showy Lady’s Slipper Orchids. They are not attractive to pollinating insects and must rely on instinctively curious Bumblebees to visit their flowers. Joe began the thankless job of hand pollinating the plants by using a small twig, with no assurance of success for many years, since the cycle from pollination to flowering can take up to 15 years.
If you’re interested, we’ll take you with us next spring when we head to the Bruce Peninsula to search out some of the forty-four species of native Orchids to be found there. Maybe you will be the one to spot the illusive Calypso Orchid.