One benefit of the (approaching record breaking amounts of) rain we’ve been having this month here in Massachusetts is the emergence of this cool native wildflower. This pale apparition is Monotropa uniflora, commonly called ghost pipe, and despite its appearance it is a plant not a mushroom.
It survives without chlorophyll because of its symbiotic relationship with the surrounding forest. The myccorhizal network in the soil connects ghost pipe to the trees overhead, and transmits the sugars collected by leaves in the canopy far above to this ethereal little flower growing on the shaded forest floor. Without the ability to capture sunlight on its own, it is supported by both members of of the plant and fungi kingdoms to fill its own niche, a ghostly glowing flower emerging from the leaf litter.
Medicinally, ghost pipe is a wonderful ally for pain, both emotional and physical. It helps those suffering to encapsulate the pain and move it away from the forefront of awareness. When working with ghost pipe, we are reminded we are connected and supported by the world around us. Ghost pipe helps make the space for the relief and healing that is there for us. This rare and potent plant has been overharvested by those seeking its benefits. If you encounter this limbic little being on your woods walk welcome its energy, sit a moment in gratitude, and leave it growing for all to enjoy its medicine.
It’s no wonder this ethereal flower captured the gothic imagination of Emily Dickinson. Upon receiving a gift of a painting of ghost pipe she wrote in thanks “That without suspecting it you should send me the preferred flower of life, seems almost supernatural, and the sweet glee that I felt at meeting it, I could confide to none.”
I share Dickinson’s sweet glee when happening upon this otherworldly plant. It could not exist without the generosity of the forest, which thrives in community, not competition, which is a beautiful reminder for all of us.
If you’d like to read more about the herbal properties of this plant, this monograph from the American Herbalist Guild captures the magic of ghost pipe better than I ever could.
I also recommend The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben to learn more about the myriad and wonderful connections that make the forest truly greater than the trees, and if fiction is more your jam The Overstory by Richard Powers weaves the science into a compelling and inspiring narrative about the power of the green world.