Gastrodia sesamoides R.BR. and its endophyte

Abstract

The anatomy of the tuberous rhizome of Gastrodia sesamoides R.Br., particularly in relation to the occurrence and detailed structure of its endophyte, is discussed and illustrated. This single Australian species resembles those other species (mainly tropical) that have been described in surviving as a saprophyte by the so-called "digestion" of its fungal symbiont. This takes place in a specialized layer of the cortex, and not, as has previously been thought, by an association with nitrogen-fixing bacteria.