Withered charm of the bird’s nest orchid
by Phil Gates from on (#EFD3)
Weardale, County Durham: With no leaves or chlorophyll the plant's survival depends upon a complex mi(C)nage i trois
It is 15 years since we last discovered a bird's-nest orchid. It was hidden among dog's mercury in an old hazel coppice. The withered brown flower spike was well past its best but its botanical charisma more than compensated for a lack of beauty.
This is an orchid that challenges preconceptions of how a plant can be defined. With no leaves and no chlorophyll, its survival depends on a single species of fungus that also forms a symbiotic association with nearby trees. The trees supply the fungus with sugars and extract minerals from it.
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