The following was received via email: I found a plant in the back woods, could you please tell me what it is. I don't have any pics at this time, but I can get some in the next couple of days to send to you. The plant grows in a group stemming from the same base, they grow about 10 inches high and the stem is perhaps 1/4 cm thick. The stem is red and white, looks kind of like a candy cane the way it is coloured. The pods are all around the stem, they are white, with black "bells" would be the best way to describe them. And they have a red centre to the pod. I have never seen these plants before or anything like them. Thanks for your time.
And the identification... The plant is scientifically known as Allotropa virgata. Commonly, it is known (and quite suitably so) as candystick or sugarstick. According to the Illustrated Flora of British Columbia, the plant is infrequent in extreme southwestern British Columbia - it is one of those plants where the northern part of its natural range just extends into Canada. Maps showing recent collections of the plant only show it as being located on Vancouver Island, although in 1915 it was also known to be found in the mountains near Chilliwack (according to J.K. Henry's Flora of Southern British Columbia and Vancouver Island). May I ask where you are located? Another interesting bit of information - the plant lacks chlorophyll, so it is actually parasitic on the soil fungi that live in association with tree root systems. Very interesting plant - thanks for sharing!
So it's good to have a round? So does it kill tree root rot? I live in Qualicum bay. 20 min's north of qualicum. Kel Thanks for the help
Yes, keep it around. Even though it's a parasite, it would never be harmful enough to any tree-fungus system to do any damage - it just steals whatever nutrients it needs to survive.
