I know there are orchids that are native to Ontario; e.g. cypripedium,
to be found mostly in wet meadows (at least the ones I can recall).
And a fair number of rather inconspicuous species; whose names escape
me.

I know there are wetlands just a few minutes drive west of me where
some quite rare orchids can be found.

Does anyone know of any orchids species that would not only be winter
hardy in Ontario (Simcoe County - north of Toronto), but thrive in a
well drained urban garden right beside moss phlox (which did quite
well last year)? I probably won't do anything about it for a few
months, but I would be quite interested in buying nursery grown
orchids that would do well in my garden, and not need to be dug up in
the fall. My health is such that I only put in plants, like phlox and
irises and lilies, that do not need a great deal of attention. I lost
some amaryllis because I had put them in a garden, but was not well
enough to bring them in last fall. Of course, I would deal only with
nursery grown plants, so that I don't create extra pressure on natural
populations.

Is there anything you could suggest, or should I forget about orchids
in the garden and just have my hardy bulbs and rhizomes outside and
orchids inside?

What would be really good is a species that reproduces vegetatively to
form clumps of plants (like some of the cypripediums do). If you have
some suggestions, an url to photographs would be good and an url to a
potential supplier would be better.

Thanks,

Ted