English
English
By ATSUO BEPPU
Born in Tokyo in 1938. Passed his boyhood on Amami-oshima island. Moved to Amami again in 1974 from Tokyo. Interested in taking pictures, shooting videos and fishing.


Yakkoso






Yuwan-Tsuchitorimochi




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Ginryoso



【 PLANTS WITHOUT CHLOROPHYL 】



* Plants without chlorophyl don't photosynthesize organic matter. Instead, they get their necessary nutrition parasitically from their host plants or leaf mold. This time, I would like to introduce three of them. They are Yakkoso, Yuwan-Tsuchitorimochi and Ginryoso.
 
Yakkoso
(Botanical name: Mitrastemon yamamotoi)
Yakkoso is a perenial parasite plant that lives on the roots of Japanese Chinquapin trees. In December, it develops a milky white scape to the length of three to seven centimeters. Its native areas are Kyushu, Shikoku, Amami and Okinawa.
 
Yuwan-Tsuchitorimochi
(Botanical name: Balanophora yuwanensis)
This species, which is also a parasite plant, is indigenous to Amami. The flowers can be seen only around the top of Mt.Yuwandake, Uken Village. Mostly, roots of Iju (cf. June 2008) play host to them. They bear red globular flowers from December to January. 
 
Ginryoso
(Botanical name: Monotropastrum humile)
This is a perenial saprophyte that grows on leaf mold in the forest. In April, white lanky scapes sprout from under dead leaves, with a gooseneck flower on top. They are also called Yureitake ("ghost fungus"). They can be seen throughout Japan.




 
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