Cypripedium parviflorum var. makasin

Northern small yellow lady's-slipper, Northern Small Yellow Lady's-Slipper

Family: Orchidaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 3.1

Northern small yellow lady's-slipper is a native perennial found in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in mesic to moist, shady conifer forest at elevations of 1,000 to 1,900 meters. Flowering from May to June, this orchid produces delicate yellow and green-yellow flowers with dark red-brown markings, featuring a distinctive rounded slipper-shaped lip. Growing 15 to 35 centimeters tall with slender, arching stems, the plant emerges with 2 to 5 alternate leaves. Its leaves are ovate to lance-elliptic, measuring 5 to 18 centimeters long, typically arranged along the stem with subtle variations in shape. The plant typically produces 1 to 2 flowers per stem, with spreading lateral petals that are often slightly twisted and a striking yellow lip that gives the orchid its distinctive common name.

Habitat: Mesic to moist, shady conifer forest

Bloom period: May-Jun(est)

Elevation: 1000-1900 m (estimated)

Bioregions: SN

California counties: Sierra

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.