Underground Orchid Reveals Plant Evolution
Australian scientists recently celebrated the successful cultivation of the bizarre Eastern Underground Orchid. Now, they’re learning about plant genetics from its close cousin, the Western Underground Orchid. This weird plant is also a Rhizanthella species, and lives below ground, except when its flowers peek through the soil. Without green leaves for photosynthesis, it survives by feeding off a fungus. It has fewer chloroplast genes than any other plant. The shrunken genetic code will help scientists better understand chloroplasts, and how plants lose genes that they no longer need. Those are big contributions to science from such a strange, small orchid.
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February 24th, 2011 at 2:57 pm
I heard of underground orchids before, but i never saw pictures. There is a good picture of the flowers inthe article. Thanks for your post!
March 2nd, 2011 at 6:11 pm
interesting info
appreciate this post
thanx
March 31st, 2011 at 3:28 pm
Freaky. That is a very weird plant.