Mysterious 'ghost' tree lives without photosynthesis

Containing no chlorophyll and requiring no sunlight, the ghost plant hides deep in the dark forests of Africa and Asia .

They reproduce by parasitizing mycorrhizal fungi and absorbing nutrients from the host.

Growing in the Dark Forest

While walking in the dark forests of the Americas and Asia from June to September, one may come across the ghost plant (scientific name: Monotropa Uniflora) , also known as the Indian pipe plant or the ghost pipe. This plant has a ghostly white color, which is easily confused with a mushroom because of its strange white color. They are perennial herbs that grow from 10 to 30 cm tall.

The ghost plant is milky white.

Ghost plants often appear in clumps, growing near the base of dead trees. Because they are so fragile and look like frozen jelly, ghost plants are sometimes called ice plants. The stems are covered with modified, scale-like leaves called bracts. As they mature, the stems can become dark brown and spotted with black.

The ghost tree does not contain chlorophyll and cannot generate energy from the Sun like most other plants. Because it does not depend on sunlight to grow, the ghost tree can thrive in the darkness of ancient forests.

The flowers of the ghost plant have five petals and usually hang down to the ground. After being pollinated by insects, they grow vertically up the stem. Bumblebees are typical pollinators and they receive some sweet nectar and pollen as a reward for pollinating.

The roots of the phantom plant are crunchy and nutritious. They are a favorite food of grizzly bears, who often dig up phantom roots as a snack.

The ghost plant belongs to the Ericaceae family, also known as heather or rhododendron . This family includes over 4,000 known species, including famous members such as blueberries and cranberries. The pale color and firm texture of the ghost plant often lead many people to mistake this plant for a fungus.

They are not actually fungi, but fungi play an important role in how the ghost plant gets its nutrients. This brings us to its creepy behavior.

Absorb nutrients from the host

They absorb nutrients from the mycorrhizal fungi to grow.

The ghost plant is one of about 3,000 species of heterotrophic plants that need to absorb nutrients from outside sources, and heterotrophs do it in very strange ways.

Insectivorous plants such as Venus flytraps, Pinguicula, sundews and pitcher plants capture and digest insects for nutrients. Parasitic plants such as dodder extract nutrients from host plants.

Like the dodder plant, the ghost plant is a parasite and lacks the chlorophyll needed to make its own food from sunlight. Ghost plants were once thought to be saprophytes, meaning plants or fungi that feed on dead or decaying matter. However, new research has found that instead of feeding on decaying matter, they are more like 'vampires' that suck nutrients from other species, in this case fungi.

It is the mycorrhizal fungi that live around the roots of trees in the deep, dark woods where the ghost tree is found. In fact, almost all land plants have roots infected with mycorrhizal fungi. They live in a relationship called mutualistic symbiosis .

Through photosynthesis, chlorophyll-containing plants use the Sun's energy to convert carbon dioxide into sugars and other nutrients. These nutrients are supplied to the fungus through the roots of the host plant.

In turn, the fungus provides water and minerals to the plant. Through a 'mutually beneficial' relationship , nutrients produced by one host plant can be shared with other plants through the underground fungal network. However, the relationship between mycorrhizal fungi and the ghost plant is not this beneficial symbiosis.

The relationship between the ghost plant and the fungus is like that of a parasite and host because the ghost plant does not provide any benefits to the fungus. It only tries to suck all the nutrients and energy from the fungus like a parasite because it does not contain chlorophyll and cannot photosynthesize.

Normally, when a parasite attaches itself to a host, the host will fight back, but somehow, which scientists have not yet discovered, the ghost plant has tricked the fungus into thinking that their relationship is symbiotic. From there, they can freely suck nutrients from the mycorrhizal fungus to grow.

Through pollination, the ghost plant releases thousands of tiny seeds into space. These seeds settle to the ground, attach to the mycorrhizal fungus, and begin to draw nutrients from it to grow. It then grows into a new plant and continues to cling to this parasitic life.

While the host plant photosynthesizes, the mycorrhizal fungi extract nutrients from the roots, while the ghost plant extracts nutrients from the fungi. This 'stealing' behavior allows them to thrive in the shade. However, after death, the ghost plant returns all the nutrients it has taken from the host and mycorrhizal fungi to the ground.

Ghost plants can be very fragile, so propagating them at home is impossible. They rely entirely on damp, dark conditions and the 'love triangle' between them, the fungus and the host plant.

Many explorers say that the ghost plant is edible. It is described as having a rather bland taste when eaten raw, but when cooked, it tastes like asparagus. However, the plant contains glycosides, a substance that can affect health if eaten in large quantities, so it cannot be used as food.