Skip to main content

The iconic orchid, Lady’s-slipper, was believed to have been driven to extinction in the UK by the early part of the 20th century as a result of over-collecting and habitat loss.

However, in 1930 a single plant was discovered growing in a remote part of the Yorkshire Dales. The location was kept secret for decades, during which time volunteers frequently checked on the plant to make sure it wasn’t dug up and stolen.

A reintroduction programme was planned with the ambition of reinstating self-sustaining populations of the orchid in the wild. Now, decades of work have finally paid off.

Last summer, the first new naturally occurring Lady’s-slipper Cypripedium calceolus plant was discovered in the wild for almost 100 years. The team who discovered the plant included Plantlife, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Natural England, the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI) and Chester Zoo.

How did it Happen?

This incredible moment for plant conservation was decades in the making.

Some 2 years ago, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, in partnership with Plantlife, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, BSBI and the National Trust received a grant from Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme to continue and extend the work to recover Lady’s-slipper.

This work involved protecting the habitat of the remaining wild Lady’s-slipper plant, rearing lots of new orchid seedlings and planting out orchids into former haunts.

Then last June, the team were delighted to discover an entirely new plant at one of the reintroduction sites. This means the orchids that were planted out have managed to cross pollinate and set seed,, which then successfully germinated and established in the wild.

How did the Team Rescue Lady’s-slipper?

Lady’s-slipper, like other orchids, has tiny seeds and has long proven difficult to cultivate from seed. It took many years to refine the technique for hand pollination, discover the best time for seed capsule collection, germinate the hand-collected seeds and successfully grow-on mature individuals that were strong enough to be planted out in the wild.

Over the years, Kew has led the development of propagation techniques for the orchid. The young plants were then transferred to the hands of volunteer orchid-specialists, managed by National Trust, who nurtured the plants for several years before they were ready to be planted out.

Trials have shown that larger plants – which are more rapidly able to get their roots down into rocky ground – growh better in the wild then smaller ones. This means, many of plants which were planted out in 2024 and 2025 were over 10 years old!

Together with Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, BSBI, Natural England and Kew, we identified suitable sites for planting out orchids back into the wild.

Why did Lady’s-slipper Almost go Extinct?

The distribution of Lady’s-slipper used to once stretch from Cumbria to Derbyshire. But as a result of over-collecting and habitat loss, the plant was believed extinct in the UK by the early part of the 20th century.

During the Victorian era it fell victim to the orchid hunting craze known as ‘orchidelirium’. Explorers would be sent off by wealthy collectors with the mission of finding new species of the delicate and beautiful orchids. Sadly, this led to Lady’s-slipper’s decline.

Find out more about the Lady’s-slipper including how and where to spot it.

 

What’s Next?

Despite this wonderful step to success, there is still work to be done. The project team will continue their work to help the Lady’s-slipper and it’s hoped that if funding is secured more self-sustaining populations of the plant will be created.

If you would like the chance to see Lady’s-slipper, you can visit Kilnsey Park near Grassington in the Yorkshire Dales in late May and early June. More information here (www.kilnseypark.co.uk).

This year Plantlife has secured more funds from Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme to monitor previous reintroductions and explore the environmental and habitat factors which correlate with various measures of success. So that future reintroductions and reinforcements can be targeted to locations that are most likely to successfully support self-sustaining populations.

Photo credits: Kevin Walker and Dr Elizabeth Cooke

Read more

Plants to Spot at the Seaside this Summer
Photo looks out over the cliffs to the sea and shows in the foreground, pink Sea Thrift and purple Heather clinging to the rocky cliffs.

Plants to Spot at the Seaside this Summer

Sun, sand, sea and wildflowers – why not add finding flowers to your list of beach time activities this summer.

How to ID plants through DNA barcoding
Sarah Shuttleworth at DNA barcoding course

How to ID plants through DNA barcoding

It’s not just animals that have DNA in their cells, plants and fungi do too – and understanding it can help us with hard to identify plants.

Rosy Saxifrage Reintroduced into Wales after 62 Years Extinct 
person holding a plant with white flowers

Rosy Saxifrage Reintroduced into Wales after 62 Years Extinct 

The beautiful mountain plant, Rosy Saxifrage, has returned to the wild in Wales after becoming extinct in 1962.