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Tipularia spp.
cranefly orchid
Overview
Tipularia is a small genus of terrestrial orchids, with around three to seven species split between eastern North America and temperate East Asia. The North American T. discolor, called cranefly orchid, is the most familiar. Each plant grows from a chain of underground corms and produces a single leaf in autumn that persists through winter, dark green above and flushed purple beneath, then withers in late spring before the flower stem appears. The leafless flowering spike rises 8-20 inches (20-50 cm) in mid to late summer and carries 20 to 40 small, asymmetric flowers in translucent green, bronze, and dull purple, each with a slender spur and a narrow lip that suggests the dangling legs of a cranefly. The flowers are set off-centre on their stalks, an arrangement matched in few other orchids. Night-flying moths pollinate them. Plants grow in the deep leaf litter of oak and beech woodland and depend on soil fungi for nutrition, which makes them slow to establish and seldom successful in ordinary garden soil. The Asian species follow a similar winter-leaf, summer-flower cycle.
Native Range
Native to two widely separated regions: the south-eastern and eastern United States, where T. discolor ranges from Florida to New England, and temperate East Asia, including Japan, China, and the eastern Himalaya.Suggested Uses
Grown in shaded native woodland and naturalistic plantings where its winter leaf and leafless summer flowers can be observed. It is used in conservation and native-orchid collections rather than as a bedding plant.How to Identify
Appearance
Size & Dimensions
Height8" - 1'8"
Width/Spread4" - 8"
Bloom Information
Detailed Descriptions
Flower Description
green, bronze, and dull purpleFoliage Description
dark green above, purple beneathGrowing Conditions
Sun Requirements
Tolerates up to 4 hours of direct sunlight daily
• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight
• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight
• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight