found these in the woods yesterday , this a plant I already recognized bc the first time i saw one last year i thought it was some type of fungus and looked it up that day to find its a plant with no chlorophyll- so it has a relationship with mycorrhizae fungi, the middle man, to take energy from the plants the fungus reaches. so these guys rlly take advantage of the mycelial network. (theres fs someone here who can explain that more cohesively lol) wanted to share bc they have become one of my favorites to find. truly ghostly and also fairy-like if u ask me. i think they look so beautiful agaisnt the dark forest ground.

i live in mass (usa) n went on a walk thru the woods to see what i could find. the first one is called Impatiens capensis or known as common jewelweed. i love the little tail it has (the nectar spur) and it took me a while to id bc i thought it had 3 petals but it actually has 5. i used a website that has a dichotomous key and also a simple key for new england plants. its a great resource, called gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org the other 3 images are a plant that i found interesting for its upside down cup shape, it is a chimaphila maculata lmk how my iphone photography skills are 😅

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