Cypripedium irapeanum

The pelican orchid: a tall, yellow-flowered lady's slipper of Mexican and Central American pine-oak forest, flowering in June and July. It is notoriously hard to grow because it depends on a fungal partner, and most attempts fail; seed-raised plants are the only responsible source.

At home, aim for

Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry

Light Bright, filtered lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Grows in mixed pine and oak forest on well-drained limestone slopes and on volcanic and clay soils, sometimes in groups of hundreds. It sprouts with the summer rains and dies back after the wet season.

Recorded at 526–2,800 m, median about 1,680 m.

MexicoGuatemalaHonduras

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates

✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it

✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light

✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it

✓ Substrate and airflow

✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY-SA 3.0 licence, unmodified.