Ghost pipe

Monotropa uniflora

Also: Indian pipe, Corpse plant, Ice plant

CoolingNeutral moistureRelaxingLow-dose herbCannot be cultivated

A ghostly forest flower, given in drops for pain that overwhelms.

A waxy, pure white plant with no green at all, nodding like the bowl of a pipe, that draws its food from fungi linked to the roots of nearby trees. A few drops of the fresh-plant tincture ease overwhelming pain, physical or emotional, and calm panic.

Energetics: Cooling, relaxing
Taste: Mild, slightly bitter
Family: Ericaceae (heath family)
Parts used: Whole plant, fresh

Medicinal uses 2

The tags sort the evidence behind each use by kind. Members are able to tap a condition to compare every herb for it.

Traditional useLab and mechanism studiesClinical studies

Aches & painTLC
In drop doses, eases intense pain enough for the person to rest.
Anxiety & stressTLC
In drop doses, for panic and overwhelming distress.

Preparations

Fresh-plant tincture, dosed by the drop.

Practitioner Practitioners are able to see the amounts and methods for ghost pipe. It is a low-dose herb, with a narrow margin between a helpful dose and a harmful one.

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Cautions

Its chemistry is barely studied. Early laboratory work has raised the possibility of grayanotoxins, the toxins in rhododendron honey, and found lead in a tincture sample, so its safety is unknown.
It may add to sedatives and pain medicines.

Sourcing

Ghost pipe cannot be grown and depends on a three-way partnership of fungi and trees. Many herbalists now leave it alone entirely; if it is used at all, it should come from someone who takes a few stems from large, healthy stands.

Medication interactions

Practitioner Practitioners are able to see the one type of medicine flagged for ghost pipe, each with the mechanism and what to do. The plain-language cautions above stay open to everyone.

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Pregnancy & breastfeeding

PregnancyAvoid

Its chemistry and safety are unknown, so it is avoided in pregnancy.

BreastfeedingAvoid

Its chemistry and safety are unknown, so it is avoided while nursing.

Folklore

Ghost pipe has no chlorophyll and makes none of its own food. It taps the underground threads of russula and milk-cap fungi, which are wrapped in turn around tree roots, so its sugar comes, by way of the fungus, from the trees' leaves. The flower nods downward as it opens, turns upward once pollinated, and the whole plant blackens as it dries.

How to grow

Cannot be cultivated.

In the wild

Shady, humus-rich forests across much of North America, Central America, and eastern Asia; it rises after summer rains and vanishes within weeks.

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