![]() ![]() In the Forest Ecosystem Research and Demonstration Area (FERDA) at the Paul Smiths VIC, an inventory of plants taken a decade after logging operations showed a decline in frequency for Indian Pipe on three of the five blocks that had been logged: shelterwood, single tree cut, and clearcut. Indian Pipe apparently does not do well in recently disturbed areas. Indian Pipe grows in a wide variety of well-drained, shady sites. ![]() Indian Pipe is found in most counties in New York State and in all counties within the Adirondack Park Blue Line, except for Clinton, Fulton, and Saratoga counties. Indian Pipe is native throughout North America, except for parts of northern Canada, from Northwestern California to Alaska east across the northern part of the western and most of the eastern United States. No wildlife uses of Indian Pipe were found. The Cree chewed the flower as a remedy for toothache. Cherokee tribes, for instance, reportedly used the pulverized root as an anticonvulsive, while the Mohegans used an infusion of the root or leaves as an analgesic. ![]() The plant was used by some native North American Indian tribes for medicinal purposes. In any case, it should not be consumed, because it is too scarce to harvest. Uses of Indian PipeĪlthough Indian Pipe is said to be edible, one source suggests that it may be toxic. Indian Pipe usually begins blooming in the Adirondacks in late July and blooms into August, although it may appear in late June in some years. The flower initially looks like a shepherd's hook, but slowly straightens after it is pollinated by an insect. The flowers are about 3/4 inches long and waxy white, like the stem. Indian Pipe bears a single, four- to six-parted white flower. The leaves are vestigial, since they do not carry on photosynthesis. Indian Pipe leaves are translucent scale-like appendages arrayed down the stem, less than an inch in length. Stems can be found alone, but are commonly found in small clusters. The whole plant is waxy white in appearance when young, although some specimans can have pale salmon pink coloration and black specks. Indian Pipe is a low-growing plant, about four to ten inches tall. Indian Pipe on the Boreal Life Trail (21 June 2014). Wildflowers of the Adirondacks: Indian Pipe's translucent leaves are overlapping and scale-like. Plants like Indian Pipe are known as epiparasites: parasites that feed on other parasites.
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