Spotted Coralroot

And now for something completely different: an orchid! The Spotted Coral Root (Corallorrhiza maculate) is fairly common in dense forests with a great deal of conifer needles on the ground. It does not need much light as it lacks chlorophyll. Instead, it draws nutrients from fungus in the soil.

Several Native American groups historically used the orchid's stems dried and brewed as a tea for such maladies as colds, pneumonia, and skin irritation. It is also called Western Coralroot and Summer Coralroot.

It blooms in early summer and then produces berry-like seed pods with copious amounts of seeds. We found about four of these growing along the woodland trail at Cooper Mountain Nature Park. 6/04/2013. They are about a foot tall. Last photo shows the berries about six weeks later.

The green leaves are not part of the Spotted Coralroot.

Seed Pods on 7/16/2013