Flower:

Raceme of 7 to 15 hanging flowers on slender stalks at the top of the plant. Flowers are about 1/3 inch across with 5 oval petals and a cluster of, orange-tipped stamens under the upper petals. Petal color is waxy white, greenish white or yellowish green and there may be greenish veins on the petals. The sepals are triangular, about as long as wide and about ¼ as long as the petals. The style is pale green and curves down and out below the lower petals like an elephant's trunk.

Leaves:

Leaves are basal, oval, up to 3 inches long and 2 inches wide, with a round tip and tapering slightly at the base. The leaf surface is dull green and there are barely noticeable teeth all around the edges. The leaf stalk is as long as or shorter than the leaf blade.

Fruit:

Fruit is a flattened round capsule about ¼ inch in diameter, with the remains of the style attached at the bottom.

Notes:

There are a few different members of this family that have similar flowers. Shinleaf is distinguished primarily by the dull leaves that are longer than wide and the short leaf stalk. It is the most common Pyrola in Minnesota. All of the Pyrolas have been move from family Pyrolaceae (Wintergreen) to Ericaceae (Heath).