I was lucky to find these Indian Pipes in one of our parks!

I have only seen these once before, they do not seem to be common. I saw one of the Naturalists in the parking lot and she practically demanded I take her to them.

A closer look........

Even closer.........

one more........

I took over 80 photos of them in all, I hope you enjoy them here as much as I did in the park. Well almost anyway........

It's been years since I've seen these in the woods where I grew up on the east coast of Fl. Did you notice a fragrance?

Wow! I have no clue what type of plant this is, I have never see them..they sure look like a special find to me!
How exciting to find something new , I would sure like to know what they are..
You found them in the park/woods in OH?
Your post caught my eye..at first I thought they were fern then clicked on the photo. interesting
They probally grow only in certain areas like the wild orchids and need a certain type of bacteria/soil and right conditions to grow.
Hope you find out what they are you can look up the native plants in state.

Nice photos.
I was surprised to see that they are considered rare. Every autumn, there are 4 or 5 patches of Indian Pipes that come up in my backyard. They are growing in a very shaded area under some old oak trees. I will try to get photos when they show up, it is still around the mid-80 degrees here but they always show up when the days turn chilly.

Found this information: I thought it was some type of fungus but its not:


Its really a flowering plant-- in the blueberry family!
This is one of about 3000 species of non-photosynthetic (i.e. heterotrophic) flowering plants. How does this plant survive?? I'll tell you later of the interesting way that this non-photosynthetic plant gets its food.

Monotropa uniflora, the ghost plantMonotropa uniflora can actually grow in dark (and spoooooooooky) environments because it is not dependent on light for photosynthesis. I tend to find this plant in rich habitats-- dense moist forests with much surface leaf litter, often in a situation that is too shaded for autotrophic (photosynthetic) growth. Finding the ghost plant is an indication to me that I am in a very rich woods, and I should be on the lookout for lots of interesting fungi. Monotropa uniflora is the most common species in Wisconsin and the rest of North America east of the Great Plains. It is also known from Japan, and probably occurs in other places as well. There are relatives of this plant that occur throughout the world.

Lotsalilys

I'm not far from your what park and where in the park? This would cool to go see them this next Saturday....

Please share secret location...LOL

Janet

edited to say I just noticed the date on the photo, so it is most likely gone....

This message was edited Oct 25, 2009 10:25 PM

Hi Neighbor! I saw them in Bedford Reservation, Hemlock Creek, along Tinkers Creek on the small trail along Tinkers Creek. Before you get to the swimmin hole by the falls (I really don't know why anyone would swim there). I am sure they are long gone, they were nearly dead the last time I saw them. I was surprised that they were left untouched. I took a few photos one day and went back 2 days later for more. The only other time I have seen them was last year at Old Womans Creek near Vermillion, and they were just coming up. I love that park when the Virginia Blue Bells are in bloom!

BTW I take a lot of photos there year round, it is a wonderful park.

This message was edited Oct 26, 2009 8:52 AM

Thanks neighbor, as we are just now getting around to seeing what is up here. We moved here from Ky several years ago and now during the summers we are investigating our surroundings...LOL

thanks, this will be one that should our weather hold up like it did today, then might just check the place out this weekend.

Janet

edited cause I hit that sent button too fast. Great shot you added.

This message was edited Oct 26, 2009 11:02 PM

I'm headed down there today to take some photos, enjoy the park!!!

I love these things. I too thought they were like a mushroom, until posting pictures here and was set straight on what they are.

We have lots of these in our woods. Sometimes they come up in the same spot, sometimes they don't. They do dry nicely, and even through our tough winters, we see the dried stems and flowers upright all through the spring and summer.

They are so unusual and very hard to take a decent picture of. Glad you found some of your own to enjoy!

Our indian pipes are starting to show up in the back of my yard again, under the old oaks. Here in north central Florida it is only just beginning to get cool. We try to keep the mushrooms picked because of our dogs, one has eaten poisonous mushrooms twice and needed emergency veterinary care. Very expensive!!
But I showed the indian pipes to my husband before he could pull them up, and I told him what I had learned from reading this site. Now it seems that we have more patches coming up than ever before. They are so interesting and different! We are enjoying them much more now, knowing that they are not a fungus. We have such a diversity of mushrooms that it is staggering, and sadly many of them are dangerous. Does anyone know if the indian pipe is toxic at all?
If we get a big patch of them, I will try to take some photos. They certainly do like the very shady and rich soil areas!

Lotsalilys

I just got my issue of On the Fringe (Native plant society of Northeastern Ohio) They now have a web site and are looking for more photos of native plants. I would suggest if you don't mind sharing your photo of these beauties sending them some photos along with their location. This is a wonderful find.... and other would dearly love to try and find some this next season.

www.nativeplantsocietyneohio.org

Their site is very interesting, with all their links.

Janet

This plant is amazing! I have certainly never seen anything like it. How does it grow without phtosynthesis? Has anyone found out if this plant is toxic ?

I found this online:
http://www.paghat.com/ghostflower.html

They talk a bit about medicinal use of the plant.
I looked in my own book collection and could not find anything saying whether or not this was medicinal or poisonous.
Nothing in Botanical Safety Handbook, nothing in The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants and nothing in Edible Leaves of the Tropics. Ditto to Folk Remedies of the Low Country.

Hi there. I love this plant, too. I just wanted to point out that Paghat's site is a great resource for all kinds of plants. She's in Seattle and I've written and asked if she ever does garden tours, but no such luck yet.

I hadn't yet happened on this page. Thanks for posting it!

I am "lucky" enough to view Monotropa uniflora quite often in my part of Virginia.

http://www.botany.org/parasitic_plants/Monotropa_uniflora.php

Great picture. I'm so envious!