Sunday Surprise

Arum dracunculus, aka Voodoo Lily and some other names I won't mention for fear of Auntie FB getting offended. Very hardy--I planted the first one probably twenty years ago--and pollinated by flies, drawn to its strong odor of carrion.

Every garden should have one--at a good distance from the house.

 

The Flowers That Bloom In the Spring

Spiderwort and Arum Dracunculus in the Creepy Garden

Return of the Dragon Arum

A Rather Vulgar Flower

Ah, the scent of carrion is in the air! The Arum Vulgaris (also called arum dracunculus, voodoo lily, snake lily, stink lily, dragonwort) is in bloom!

Yes, those are flies promenading on its spadix  (the vulgar bit)-- they are lured by the aroma to act as pollinators.

Why would anyone want a thing like this in their garden? I've been asked that more than once and can only say  I find this plant strange and wonderful.(I did, however, move it farther from the house after the first year.) 

There's more about it HERE.

Spiderwort and the Lewd Arum

I stopped in at my favorite plant nursery on Wednesday to  pick up some eggplant starts and was seduced by this gorgeous chartreuse-leaved spiderwort.  Sure, spiderwort grows wild around here but it doesn't look like this.

Spiderwort's 'real' name is Tradescantia, in honor of the Tradescants (father and son), English naturalists who introduced the plant to England back in the early 1600s.

Their friend John Smith (yes, the Pocahontas one) brought them many plant specimens and tradescantia virginiana was probably one of them.

And here below is the lewd arum -- aka Arum Dracunculus. I've posted about it before -- it has a way of calling attention to itself. It looks like Thus Spake Zarathrutra should be playing but it can't manage that. Instead it emits a VERY strong odor of rotting carrion to attract the flies that will aid in pollination.