#ghostplant

Have you ever seen these? This was a first for me. I ran across them while camping in northern Minnesota. I assumed this was a type of fungus, but a Google search revealed that it’s called “ghost plant” (Monotropa uniflora). Apparently this unusual woodland wildflower isn’t super common in most areas so it was cool seeing some in person. They have no chlorophyll so they never turn green. Since they don’t have chlorophyll they can’t produce their own food. Instead, they rely on the nutrients produced by specific species of mushrooms that grow under specific species of trees. If the right mushrooms don’t grow, these plants don’t grow either. This dependence on their host mushrooms makes ghost plants a parasite species. They are also called “Indian pipe” because of their shape. If you pick them the stalks turn black almost immediately which earned them another of their names; the “corpse plant”. They bloom with a single flower on the end of each stalk and bees will pollinate them but they don’t have a fragrance that humans can detect. Purportedly they have a variety of medicinal applications that range from stopping epileptic seizures to fighting gonorrhea and toothaches. These were an interesting discovery, at least for a nature geek like me. #GhostPlant #IndianPipePlant #CorpsePlant #MonotropaUniflora
#NorthAmericanWildflower #WildFlowers #RareFlowers 
https://www.instagram.com/p/CEltafDAsXJ/?igshid=1853n2j1037q2

What pollinates ghost pipe, aka indian pipe?  Bees of course.  It took me as a surprise,but this parasitic plant (feeds on the fungi associated with trees) is in the ericaceous family, same as blueberries and kin and indeed bees, both bumblebees and "small" bees are noted, come to these flowers.   Since they often bloom later in the year when most of the spring plants and bees are gone it would be interesting to learn more about its pollination strategy.  Picture and specimen by Helen Lowe Metzman.

My mini ghost plant is not that mini anymore and has many baby’s growing!

@sweetschizo

My Ghost Plant hangin’ out and catching some sun.

Graptopetalum Paraguayense Also know as the “Ghost Succulent”. Normally, these succulents only have their pale green color, but this one I picked up I believe has some sort of genetic mutation? His spots are no raised and don’t seem to be causing him any harm. I am going to try and propagate some of his leaves to see what I get in terms of color.

Jade, ghost plant, and elephant ear cuttings I’ve had for about 2 months now.