CHAPTER XXVI.
LADY'S-SLIPPER.
(1) Cypripedium hirsutum Mill and
(2) Cypripedium parviflorum Salisb.
Synonym — (1) Cypripedium Pubescens Wild.
Pharmacopoeial Name — Cypripedium.
Other Common Names — (1) Large yellow lady's-slipper, yellow lady's-slipper, yellow moccasin-flower, Venus'-shoe, Venus'-cup, yellow Indian-shoe, American valerian, nerve-root, male nervine, yellow Noah's-ark, yellows, monkey-flower, umbil-root, yellow umbil; (2) small yellow lady's-slipper.
Habitat and Range — Both of these native species frequent bogs and wet places in deep shady woods and thickets. The large yellow lady's-slipper may be found from Nova Scotia south to Alabama and west to Nebraska and Missouri. The range for the small yellow lady's-slipper extends from Newfoundland south along the mountains to Georgia and west to Missouri, Washington and British Columbia.
Description of Plants — The orchid family (Orchicaceae), to which the lady's-slipper belong, boasts of many beautiful, showy and curious species and the lady's-slipper is no exception. There are several other plants to which the name lady's-slipper has been applied, but one glance at the peculiar structure of the flowers in the species under consideration, as shown in the illustration will enable any one to recognize them as soon as seen.
The particular species of lady's-slipper under consideration in this article do not differ very materially from each other. Both are perennials, growing from 1 to about 2 feet in height, with rather large leaves and with yellow flowers more or less marked with purple, the main difference being that in hirsutum the flower is larger and pale yellow, while in parviflorum the flower is small, bright yellow, and perhaps more prominently striped and spotted with purple. The stem, leaves and inside of corolla or lip are somewhat hairy in the large yellow lady's-slipper, but not in the small yellow lady's-slipper. These hairs are said to be irritating to some people in whom they cause an eruption of the skin.