Ghost Flower

Monotropa uniflora: One turn, One flower

Rising from the underground,
Pollinated upside down
Eyebright, gleaming white
Pale-shrouded, apparition of light
Head bowed to earth, facing the dirt
Pedant, penitent, parasite

Feeding from Russula and Lactarius
Petals fleshy, intentions nefarious
Five-parted, achlorophyllous flower
Fairy-smoke in a shady bower
Ripe upturned head, an urn for the dead
Gravid, gestating, geist

Arillus seeds spilled, chaff to the wind
Corpse-plant children, reaching to dig in
Five-celled capsules dessicated and dry
Opened like a hand grasping at the sky
No capsule retained, only pistil remains
Brown, barren, bleak

Ripe upturned head, an urn for the dead

Brown, barren, bleak

Note: Ghost Flower cannot be cultivated because of its complex relationships with mycorrhizal hosts and their tree symbionts. Take only photos, leave only footprints.