On the 29th, Zhao Li, a Chinese entomologist and director of the Huaxi Insect Museum in Chengdu, inadvertently discovered seven rare specimens of Monotropa uniflora, also known as the 'Crystal Orchid,' while camping in Ailao Mountain, Yunnan. This plant emerges above ground for only 40 days each year and is also known by a unique name, the 'Flower of the Underworld.' Because it withers at a touch, it is even regarded as a flower of the celestial realm in novels.
According to Red Star News, on the afternoon of the 29th, Zhao Li, while exploring the leaf litter with Ailao Mountain forest rangers, discovered the Crystal Orchid. Zhao Li said, “Coming across Monotropa uniflora was a complete accident and a delightful surprise.” He also found that the Crystal Orchid appeared in three locations, totaling seven specimens, within about one square kilometer at an elevation of 2,450 meters.
Zhao Li pointed out that Monotropa uniflora is a rare and mysterious mycoheterotrophic plant, pure white like crystal, that grows in dark, damp environments and depends on decaying organic matter for sustenance. Every year, it emerges above ground for only about 40 days, remaining hidden underground for the other 300-plus days. Because of its mysterious nature, it is also called the “Flower of the Ghost World” or “Ghost Grass,” and in novels it is praised as a flower of the celestial realm.
It is known that the Crystal Orchid grows to a height of 10 to 15 centimeters. Since it cannot perform photosynthesis, it must rely on symbiotic fungi to absorb water and inorganic salts from decaying branches and fallen leaves. It has been found in Yunnan, Guangxi, and Sichuan, among other places, and has been classified by China as “National Near Threatened.” It can also be found in temperate to cold forested areas of the Northern Hemisphere. Although it is called an orchid, it is not actually a type of orchid.
Zhao Li also commented: “The fleeting, crystalline beauty of its bloom can only be eternal amid the cracks of the mountain forest. If you are lucky enough to encounter it, please admire it from a distance and do not disturb it, so as to preserve this purity from the 'netherworld.'” If a person touches or picks the Crystal Orchid, it will immediately turn black or wither, because its wound exudes liquid that oxidizes, and once separated from its symbiotic system, it cannot survive.