This cluster of plants appeared near the edge of my lawn this week. (Scarborough Ontario). So far none of my gardening friends have ever seen anything like it. I thought it was a flower but it appears to be all white leaves with a purple stem. I'm thinking that one of the birds visiting my feeder brought the seeds in. Anyone know this? Thanks for your help.
Don't know about the fringed bits near the top, but otherwise it looks like Epipactis helleborine. It's supposed to be green, this one is lacking chlorophyll for some reason. White coast redwoods are also seen occasionally. Picture a tall white tree. They must be coming from a stump that has also put up trunks with normal green foliage to survive.
Wow...would love to see this one up close and personal. I've never seen a plant like that. Yes, it does resemble Epipactis, now that you mention it, but then those fringey things at the top are a bit too long to be the ones typically on a flower spike. Hmm...so hard to see detail when it's all white! Are there other ones near by that are green? As Ron was saying, if it's Epipactis, there must be.
My wife spotted a green version of this. It does resemble a young Epipactis helleborine. After seeing the green one I think I moved that one from our lawn last year. (We stopped spraying our lawn 10 years ago.) The plant last year didn't seem to survive and it never bloomed. Maybe these will grow up. I guess the white ones are an albinos. The fringe at the top are young leaves.
Fascinating. Apparently this is not unheard of. The albino form of Epipactis helleborine is mentioned in the eFloras.org listing. And a search brought me to this article from Microbial Ecology entitled "Chlorophyllous and Achlorophyllous Specimens of Epipactis microphylla (Neottieae, Orchidaceae) Are Associated with Ectomycorrhizal Septomycetes, including Truffles". http://www.cefe.cnrs.fr/coev/pdf-Selosse/A28.pdf So it might not have a green plant part. It apparently can live off a symbiotic relationship with fungus in the ground. Thank you for sharing your pictures!
How lovely! I had one similiar to this growing when I lived further North but it was actually streaked with green...so not even a true 'albino' version. But then? I also get streaked grass...hydrangea....cats....................lol Very pretty...have u dug it up to see if u can grow it in a planter?
The white ones eventually browned and dried up. Must have had trunks to the green one as suggested here so probably digging it up would have also killed it. I didn't get them back this year either.
