NEWSLETTER SCHEDULE 
     
    
   
   
    
     A number of unforeseen events combined with heavy work commitments have 
     
     delayed the publication of Issues Number 128 and 129 of the the Island 
     
     Naturalist. I regret any inconvenience this may have caused readers and hope 
     
     that the normal schedule can be re-established in the near future. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Dan McAskill, Editor 
     
    
   
   
    
     THE STEMLESS LADY'S SLIPPER by Kate MacQuarrie 
     
    
   
   
    
     Take a walk through one of our Island’s forests in June or early July 
     
     and you may come across a very beautiful and relatively common woodland plant. 
     
     Its latin name is Cypripedium acaule, but it is better known as our provincial 
     
     flower, the Stemless Lady’s Slipper. 
     
    

    
     There is much misinformation surrounding the Lady's Slipper. For 
     
     example, many people believe it is a protected species and the picking of it 
     
     is illegal. While it is protected in some parts of North America, this is not 
     
     the case on Prince Edward Island. of course, although the picking of the 
     
     Lady's slipper is not illegal, it should not be done. While the flower may 
     
     return the following year if the leaves have not been removed, the seeds 
     
     within the flower (some 60,000 in total) will have been eliminated. With 
     
     every seed bearing flower that is picked, the spread of the Lady’s Slipper is 
     
     reduced. 
     
    

    
     Another common misconception is that 
     
     the Lady’s Slipper is a rare plant, seldom 
     
     seen by any but those fortunate enough to 
     
     stumble across it. This is likely a 
     
     holdback from the time when our provincial 
     
     flower was the Showy Lady’s Slipper (C. 
     
     hirsutum in the 1950s, now C. reginae). 
     
    

    
     The Showy Lady’s Slipper is uncommon on 
     
     P.E.I., found primarily in the West Prince 
     
     region. The Stemless Lady's Slipper became 
     
     our provincial emblem in 1965 and is found 
     
     in woodlands across the P.E.I. The easiest 
     
     was to distinguish our floral emblem from 
     
     its close relative is by the leaves at the 
     
     base of the plant; the colour of the flower 
     
     does not necessarily tell you which species 
     
     it is. The Stemless Lady’s Slipper has two 
     
     leaves which do not wrap around the stem, 
     
     while the Showy Lady’s Slipper has many 
     
     leaves which do wrap around the stem at 
     
     their base. A third Lady’s Slipper, the 
     
     Yellow Lady’s Slipper (C. calceolus) is quite rare on P.E.I., with specimens 
     
     having been found in a mixed wood near Monticello, King's County. The Yellow 
     
     Lady’s Slipper has two leaves like the Stemless version, however these leaves 
     
     do wrap around the stem. The Stemless Lady’s Slipper is usually pink or 
     
     white, while the Showy Lady’s Slipper generally has a white floral lip blushed 
     
     with purple. 
     
    

    
     Our provincial floral emblem is found in acidic soil in dry or moist 
     
     woods throughout P.E.I. If you own or have access to a woodlot, take a look 
     
     for the Lady’s Slipper - you'll be surprised how often you see it. If not, 
     
     try: Murray River Pines (near the mill in Murray River), Townshend Woodlot 
     
     (Souris Line Road), Bonshaw Hills Trail, or Wellington. These are just a few 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
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