A few days ago I noticed several clusters of odd-looking whitish plants growing near our house. They were huddled among clumps of vinca under a stand of mature hickories and white pines. Although small and delicate, they stood out against the rust-colored pine needles and shiny green vinca leaves.
At first I thought they were peculiar mushrooms, but on closer examination I realized they must be Indian pipes. I don’t recall ever seeing these flowers before, but I recognized them because of their association with Emily Dickinson.
The Indian pipe, also called ghost pipe or corpse plant, is fascinating. The entire plant, not more than eight inches or so tall (and closer to three or four in my yard), consists of a white, petaled stem that curls over at the tip where the single flower, a delicate white tube, emerges. It blooms from approximately June through September. The flower points downward so that water will not collect inside, diluting the nectar that visiting insects collect as they also spread pollen from plant to plant.
When the flower is older and pollination has occurred, the flower points upward and begins to produce a fruit. The fruit is a small, brownish capsule. When it dies, it dries up and its seeds are released through slits in the skin.
Indian pipe (Monotropa uniflora) lacks chlorophyll, which accounts for its eerie translucent white color. The genus name, Monotropa, is Greek, meaning “one bend,” referring to the sharply curved stem. The species name, uniflora, is Latin, meaning “one flower.”
It is a saprophyte, meaning that it does not produce its own food and draws nutrients through its roots from fungi, which in turn draw their nutrients from trees. It is found in moist, sheltered woodland areas, often near tree stumps. Like truffles, it also is known to grow under beech trees.
When it dies, it turns dark brown or black. Although it looks like a fungus, it is actually an herbaceous perennial.
The plant, including its dark, brittle roots, is said to have a variety of medicinal applications. A tea produced from the root is claimed to be a remedy for epilepsy, spasms and fainting spells, as well as fever and inflammation. Native Americans used the root as an emetic and cold remedy. A word of caution: on the websites I checked, the plant’s safety is “undetermined.” It may be toxic.
Emily Dickinson helped to make the Indian pipe a celebrity of the plant world. According to Judith Farr, author of “The Gardens of Emily Dickinson,” Indian pipe had been a favorite plant of the poet’s since childhood. One of her late poems, about “February, that Month of fleetest sweetness,” reads:
White as an Indian Pipe
Red as a Cardinal Flower
Fabulous as a Moon at Noon
February Hour—
Several years before Dickinson’s death in 1886, her acquaintance Mabel Loomis Todd (the two women never actually met) sent her a watercolor painting of Indian pipes. In a letter of profuse gratitude, Dickinson wrote: “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 can only speculate on why Dickinson would refer to such a spectral plant as “the preferred flower of life.” Perhaps because it depends on two other living organisms for its survival? I’m sure local Dickinson enthusiasts will have a better answer!
When Dickinson’s poems were published after her death, edited by Todd and Thomas Wentworth Higginson, they became a surprise bestseller. The covers of the three original volumes of the poems bore a copy of Todd’s Indian pipe painting. The original painting is at Amherst College in the Archives and Special Collections.
Next time you’re walking in the woods, be on the lookout for the real thing. These shy but beguiling floral gems will make you smile.
On Saturday, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m., Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston will host the New England Daylily Society’s annual show. Daylily enthusiasts from all over New England will show their best grown, best groomed daylily flowers. At 11 a.m. there will be a presentation on daylily propagation and how to extend the bloom season. There will also be a demonstration on how to divide a daylily clump for increase using a unique new tool. Admission is free with the regular fee to the garden.
The Berkshire Woodworkers Guild will have a fine woodwork show and silent auction July 22 and 23 at Berkshire Botanical Garden in Stockbridge. These woodworkers, from the Berkshires, Columbia County and surrounding areas, produce stunning and unique pieces of furniture and art. The weekend will include demonstrations of woodworking techniques. Proceeds will benefit the Guild’s scholarship fund. For more information, go to berkshirebotanical.org.
On Aug. 21 and 22, from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., the Hitchcock Center for the Environment in Amherst is offering a two-day professional development opportunity for K-8 science teachers.
Working with a dedicated group of classroom teachers and environmental educators, the center has developed several curriculum units that align with the new Massachusetts Science and Technology standards and teach critical lessons about energy, water and climate. The center’s new Living Building is able to model systems of net-zero water, net-zero energy, composting toilets, onsite greywater treatment and non-toxic building materials which enhance the curriculum. The program is free, but registration is required. For more information and to register, go to: hitchcockcenter.org.
Mickey Rathbun can be reached at foxglover8@gmail.com.