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rbuzby
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rbuzby
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 9:50 am 
Do you like Hot Tamales candy? I do. This plant has little, uh, things on it that are like a Hot Tamales candies. Around .5 to 1 inch long, sort of soft and squishy like little tomatoes. It's growing in the Icicle creek bed at around 3800 feet elevation. I have never seen one of these, and I didn't see any others in the vicinity of this one. Occam's razor says this is an ordinary Cascades plant that I just haven't seen until last week. But I wonder. Any idea what this is? Anybody?

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Mike Collins
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 10:00 am 
The original post was showing another species of plant in the same genus. I think this is the plant. The wikipedia photo is slightly confusing as the leaf of prominence in the photo is not from the plant. It is from another plant that photobombed the shot. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streptopus_amplexifolius

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rbuzby
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rbuzby
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 10:08 am 
That does look like it except for the hot tamale shaped fruit instead of round. I wonder if maybe a seed caught a ride on someone's boot, or inside a horse or something, and transported it to that spot. If it's a common mountain plant seems like they would be all over up there. Thanks Mike.

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Brockton
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 10:29 am 
Another vote for Streptopus amplexifolius ("twisted stalk"). Looking through these herbarium images, I think the fruit may start round but maybe it elongates as the seeds mature? https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Streptopus%20amplexifolius Elongated seed photo: https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/photo.php?Photo=wtu049840&Taxon=Streptopus%20amplexifolius&SourcePage=taxon

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Mike Collins
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 10:29 am 
The stem of the original photo is straight (hence not the "twisted stalk") Within the same genus is this plant which may be what it is after all. I'll let you compare the images. https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Streptopus+streptopoides

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rbuzby
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rbuzby
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 10:40 am 
Wow you guys are amazing. Thank you Mike and Brockton. It must be Streptopus amplexifolius. I saw a pic at one of those links that did have the elongated fruit, that was taken in the Gifford Pinchot NF. And the description says it likes sandy moist soil, shady but not deep shade. The middle of the Icicle creek bed at 3800 feet is exactly where this plant should be. I guess I was the interloper in this case. Fascinating stuff.

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nordique
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 11:23 am 
For plant IDs for all the photos I take, I have an app on my Android phone called iNaturalist. I use it after the hike usually, while I try to label photos. I take a photo of what's on my computer monitor and--presto!--I get the ID. Speaking of photos, time now to do a quick trip outside to get a photo of today's hideous orange air! Yuck!

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rbuzby
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rbuzby
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PostSat Sep 12, 2020 4:12 pm 
Thanks nordique! Edit: I was watching a slide show of mountain pics on my big tv. I saw a shot of this curious plant, from a hike up Earl peak! From 2009. So I have seen it before, I just forgot. Glad to finally know more about it.

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