Minnesota

The Story Behind the Pink and White Lady's Slipper

Imagine being one of the first states in the country to choose an official state flower. And then, nine years later, discovering you'd chosen the wrong one. That's what happened in Minnesota. In 1893, Minnesota decided the lady's slipper orchid should represent the state. There was just one little problem. The particular lady's slipper named in the resolution didn't actually grow in Minnesota. The mistake was embarrassing enough to make newspaper headlines. But that botanical mix-up eventually led Minnesota to one of the most remarkable flowers in North America. The beautiful pink and white lady's slipper. And its story didn't end with becoming the state flower.

This short video shares how Minnesota accidentally chose the wrong orchid as its state flower, how the mistake was corrected, and why protecting the beautiful pink and white lady's slipper became so important.

Pink and White Lady's Slipper

Cypripedium reginae

Also known as the showy lady's slipper or queen's lady's slipper, this beautiful wild orchid is one of Minnesota's most distinctive native flowers.

Its blossoms have white upper petals and a large, inflated pink pouch that looks almost like a tiny slipper.

And while it may look delicate, this orchid is remarkably long-lived.

A few things that make it special:

Native to parts of northern and eastern North America
Grows in wetlands, bogs, fens, and other moist habitats
Blooms primarily in late spring and early summer
Can take well over a decade to produce its first flower under some conditions
May survive for several decades when growing in suitable habitat

Like many orchids, the lady's slipper depends on specialized relationships with fungi in the soil to germinate and establish itself.

That makes growing one from seed extraordinarily difficult.

It's not the kind of flower you can simply scatter in your garden and expect to bloom next spring.

And that slow, complicated life cycle is one reason protecting wild populations matters so much.

Why It Became the State Flower

Minnesota's state flower story begins in 1893, the year of the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.

As states prepared to showcase their unique identities, members of Minnesota's Women's Auxiliary promoted the lady's slipper orchid as a floral emblem.

Their recommendation reached the state legislature, which adopted a resolution recognizing the lady's slipper.

Minnesota was among the earliest states to formally recognize a state flower.

But there was a problem hiding in the botanical name.

The original resolution identified the flower as Cypripedium calceolus.

That species wasn't the showy pink and white orchid native to Minnesota.

In 1902, the mistake attracted attention when horticultural groups pointed out that the flower named in the resolution wasn't actually found growing in the state.

Newspapers picked up the story saying that the Minnesota state flowe was a fake!

Minnesota had chosen a state flower that wasn't really Minnesota's flower!

The legislature corrected the mistake in 1902, naming the pink and white lady's slipper, Cypripedium reginae, as the state's floral emblem.

But there was still another step to come.

Although the flower had been recognized through legislative resolutions, it wasn't formally established in state law until 1967.

So Minnesota's flower went through quite a journey:

1893: Minnesota recognizes a lady's slipper orchid as its state flower.
1902: The botanical mistake is corrected, and the pink and white lady's slipper is named.
1967: The flower's official status is written into state law.

All that for one beautiful orchid.

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