Plant of the Month October 2021: Ghost Plant

Ghost Plant (Indian Pipe), Monotropa uniflora

Text and Photos by Betsy Washington

Ghost Plant, Monotropa uniflora with ghostly white coloration

In honor of the Halloween season, the October Plant of the Month is Ghost Plant or Indian Pipe – a very unusual member of the Heath family which includes blueberries, rhododendrons, and azaleas. This small perennial is often mistaken for a fungus with its ghostly white, green waxy, translucent stems and flowers. It completely lacks chlorophyll which gives plants their green color, so cannot photosynthesize or obtain energy from the sun. Instead, it obtains its nutrients by parasitizing the fungi that have symbiotic relationships with trees such as oaks and pines. 

The mycorrhizal fungi attach to tree roots in a vast underground filamentous network and the fungus provides the tree with water and inorganic nutrients while the tree provides sugars and carbon to the fungus. Ghost Plant has other tricks up its ghostly stems and fools the fungus into thinking it will provide benefits in exchange for nutrients but instead it is a parasite in a one-way relationship. Because Ghost Plants don’t need sunlight for photosynthesis, they are often found in dark, “spooky” places where other plants can’t grow such as deep in the forest under dense thickets of mountain laurels.

Ghost Plant occurs over much of the U.S. and is found in every county in Virginia. Even though it is widespread, it is not commonly seen, and always a cause for excitement. The Flora of VA describes Ghost Plant as occurring in a variety of soils and vegetation types from moist to dry upland forests, but they are often found locally in rich, moist woods, with lots of leaf litter. They can emerge and bloom in any month from June to November but most commonly seen in fall. Dozens of them have been blooming at Hickory Hollow NAP in Lancaster County this fall, particularly along the Aqua and White Trails as they parallel the stream on the west side of the preserve.

Indian Pipes are short plants, only about 4 to 10” tall, with waxy white stalks, vestigial leaves,and single flowers. Occasionally the stems and flower may be tinged pink or even red. Since Ghost Plants do not contain chlorophyll nor photosynthesize, their leaves are reduced to tiny scales pressed tightly against the stem and often flecked with black. The waxy white flowers occur singly, with one bell-shaped at the top of each stem. Their genus name, Monotropa, means “once-turned” referring to the nodding flower that face down when they first emerge, and their specific name, uniflora, means “one flower, aptly describing this wildflower. Each waxy flower consists of five petals fused together into a cup. When the plant first emerges, the flower nodsdownward, but once the oanthers and stigma are mature, the bell-shaped flowers turn to face outwards. These unusual flowers are pollinated by bees and other insect pollinators seeking nectar.  After the flower has been pollinated and seeds begin to form, the flower and developing seed capsule turns to face straight upwards.  Each capsule is five-parted and releases the seedsfrom vertical slits in the capsule to be dispersed by wind. Afterwards, the plants gradually turn an“eerie” black and look more like a decaying fungus than wildflower and wither away, leaving the perennial rootstock to send up new plants the following year.  

So, get out and have some ghostly fun in your local woodlands looking for Ghost Plants while enjoying the spectacular fall color. And while you pare out, look for Ghost Plant’s smaller cousin, Pinesap (Monotropa hypopithys) which also lacks chlorophyll and employs a similar strategy in obtaining its nutrients. You can recognize it by the multiple fuzzy nodding flowers atop each stem and its yellow-reddish fall coloration. Enjoy! They are a real Halloween treat for your eyes when you are strolling in the woods.