Purdon Fen - in Larnark County

Purdon Conservation Area is a unique wetland famous for its exceptionally large native colony of Showy Lady's Slipper Orchids. My sister and I visited June 25th.  Each year between mid-June and early July orchids burst into bloom. It is extremely rare to find a colony of this size and Purdon is the largest in Canada.

The Iris' were beautiful also.

Passed it's peak but still beautiful.

This plant was most interesting.  Pitcher plants are carnivorous, meat eating plants  It's leaves are shaped like a tube called a pitfall trap. Inside the tube are little hairs, or tentacles, that point toward the bottom of the inside of the tube. This is so that the insects that get into the tube cannot make their way back out. At the bottom of the tube of a pitcher plant is a gel substance that digests the trapped insects.

Not sure what these two were (above and below).

Yellow Loosestrife

There was a 400 metre wooden boardwalk through the colony allowing you to have a close-up view of the delicate pink and white orchids.  The wetland was originally part of Mr. Purdon's farm and he began to manage the few dozen plants he discovered growing there in the late 1930s. Mississippi Valley Conservation acquired the site in 1984 and pledged to preserve it for the enjoyment and enrichment of future generations.
It was an enjoyable learning experience about fens and what grows there.