365Caws is now in its 16th year of publication. If I am unable to post daily, I hope readers who love the natural world and fiberarts will seize those days to read the older material. Remember that this has been my journey as well, so you may find errors in my identifications of plants. I have tried to correct them as I discover them. Likewise, I have refined fiberarts techniques and have adjusted recipes, so search by tags to find the most current information. And thank you for following me!
Tuesday, August 9, 2022
Platanthera Stricta, Slender Bog Orchid
Day 300: Mount Rainier National Park is home to at least 15 members of the Orchid family (Orchidaceae), but none has a flower larger than roughly an inch in its greatest dimension. The more floriferous members of the family put up tall spikes bearing numerous individual flowers which on close examination resemble those of corsage orchids, but on a miniature scale. Many are subtly fragrant if not particularly colourful and in fact about half are simply green or white (the exceptions are Calypso bulbosa and most Coralroots). There is some debate as to whether Orchids such as Platanthera stricta (above) can be considered truly mycoheterotrophic, but all depend on some degree of assistance from soil-borne fungi which break down nutrients into a form which can be used by the plant. Some researchers will argue that the fungus receives no reciprocal benefit from the orchid and therefore the relationship is one of parasitism, but to my way of thinking, there must be some undetected mutualism. Just because we can't quantify something doesn't mean it isn't there.
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