This week we get a view of a cluster of ghost pipes growing in Caledon State Park in Virginia. I photographed these in late May of 2022. Ghost pipes (Monotropa uniflora) are a very interesting plant, especially in that they don’t contain chlorophyll. Instead they pull energy through a parasitic bond to a type of fungi, which itself has a parasitic bond to other plant life, such as trees.

Even though it may not look like it, these are flowering plants producing a single flower bud atop each stem. You can see the buds in this photo. Apparently they do produce pollen and bumblebees are one of their more common pollinators, though I don’t recall seeing any around any of the plants I’ve found.

I found a similar cluster of ghost pipes during our first visit to Voorhees Nature Preserve in July of 2021.

Have you ever stumbled upon ghost pipes in any of the woods you’ve hiked?

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