Practical
Plants

Arum italicum

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Taxonomy and growth

Family
Araceae
Genus
Arum
Life cycle
perennial
Height
0.4 m
Spread
0.3 m
Fertility
Flies
Flower type
monoecious
Pollinators
Flies

Uses

Toxicity

Toxicity warning. The historical record reports a hazard for this plant. Do not use it to decide which parts are safe to eat or use medicinally.

The plant contains calcium oxylate crystals. These cause an extremely unpleasant sensation similar to needles being stuck into the mouth and tongue if they are eaten, but they are easily neutralized by thoroughly drying or cooking the plant or by steeping it in water[11].

Edible uses

Tuber - cooked and used as a vegetable[6][5]. An arrowroot can be extracted from the dried root[2]. The root must be thoroughly dried or cooked before being eaten, see the notes above on toxicity.

Plant part
Root

Environment

Range
Southern Europe, including Britain, to N. Africa.
Habitat
Stony ground near the sea, hedges and among old walls, often on calcareous soils[4][12][7].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
permanent shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 6+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a greenhouse or cold frame as soon as it is ripe[3]. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 6 months at 15°c[3]. Stored seed should be sown in the spring in a greenhouse and can be slow to germinate, sometimes taking a year or more. A period of cold stratification might help to speed up the process. Sow the seed thinly, and allow the seedlings to grow on without disturbance for their first year, giving occasional liquid feeds to ensure that they do not become mineral deficient. When the plants are dormant in the autumn, divide up the small corms, planting 2 - 3 in each pot, and grow them on in light shade in the greenhouse for a further year, planting out when dormant in the autumn. Division of the corms in summer after flowering[7]. Larger corms can be planted out direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up the smaller corms and grow them on for a year in a cold frame before planting them out.

Cultivation

Prefers a humus rich soil and abundant water in the growing season[1]. Succeeds in sun or dry shade[12], preferring a shady position[10][4][9] and growing well in woodland conditions[1]. A polymorphic species[7], the British form has been separated off by some botanists as A. neglectum[4]. The leaves appear in the autumn, the plant staying green all winter[1, K]. The inflorescence has the remarkable ability to heat itself above the ambient air temperature to such a degree that it is quite noticeable to the touch[10]. This probably protects the flowers from damage by frost, or allows it to penetrate frozen ground. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[8].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  2. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

    ↩

  3. Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan. 1988-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  4. Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  5. Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984-00-00 ISBN 3874292169

    ↩

  6. Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20459-6

    ↩

  7. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2↩3

  8. Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990-00-00 ISBN 0 460 86048 8

    ↩

  9. Brown. Shade Plants for Garden and Woodland.

    ↩

  10. Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984-00-00 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9

    ↩1↩2

  11. Frohne. D. and Pf�nder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984-00-00 ISBN 0723408394

    ↩

  12. Phillips. R. and Rix. M. Bulbs Pan Books 1989-00-00 ISBN 0-330-30253-1

    ↩1↩2

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