Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Share

Plant Database

Search for native plants by scientific name, common name or family. If you are not sure what you are looking for, try the Combination Search or our Recommended Species lists.

Enter a Plant Name:
Or you can choose a plant family:
Corallorhiza striata (Hooded coralroot)
Glase, Terry

Corallorhiza striata

Corallorhiza striata Lindl.

Hooded Coralroot, Striped Coralroot, Bigelow's Coral Root, Macrae's Coral Root, Madder Stripes

Orchidaceae (Orchid Family)

Synonym(s): Corallorrhiza striata

USDA Symbol: cost19

USDA Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N)

The orchids of genus Corallorhiza have no chlorophyll and are mycoheterotrophic; that is, they utilize fungi to parasitize the roots of other plants. A nearly leafless plant with several or many erect, reddish-purple stems bearing several or many reddish-striped, pale pinkish, bilaterally symmetrical flowers in a raceme.

Corallorhiza means "coral root," though the "root" is actually a hard mass of rhizomes. After producing flower stalks, the rhizomes may remain dormant for several years. The most attractive of several coral roots, this orchid can withstand cold but not heat and thus cannot be successfully cultivated south of its natural range.

 

From the Image Gallery

8 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Fruit Type: Capsule
Size Notes: Up to about 2 feet tall.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Red , Yellow , Purple
Bloom Time: Mar , Apr , May , Jun , Jul , Aug

Distribution

USA: AZ , CA , CO , ID , MI , MN , MT , ND , NE , NM , NV , NY , OR , SD , TX , UT , WA , WI , WY
Canada: NB , ON , QC
Native Distribution: Throughout West south to Mexico; in East, much of Canada south to New York and west to Dakotas and Nebraska; also in Texas.
Native Habitat: Deep, rich woods.

Growing Conditions

Soil pH: Alkaline (pH>7.2)
CaCO3 Tolerance: High
Soil Description: Organic, Humus Enriched
Conditions Comments: It can withstand cold but not heat and cannot be successfully cultivated south of its natural range. (Niering)

Benefit

Conspicuous Flowers: yes

Mr. Smarty Plants says

Weird-looking rootless plant, perhaps a fungus
August 23, 2008
While out it my backyard (i.e. the Black Hills of South Dakota), I spotted a weird-looking rootless plant (I think it may be a fungus) growing beneath the Ponderosa Pines. It was the only one in the a...
view the full question and answer

National Wetland Indicator Status

Region:AGCPAKAWCBEMPGPHIMWNCNEWMVE
Status: FACU UPL FACU FACU FACU
This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.1 (Lichvar, R.W. 2013. The National Wetland Plant List: 2013 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2013-49: 1-241). Click here for map of regions.

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter

Additional resources

USDA: Find Corallorhiza striata in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Corallorhiza striata in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Corallorhiza striata

Metadata

Record Modified: 2023-04-24
Research By: TWC Staff

Go back