Photo: Jörg Hempel, CC BY-SA 3.0 de (via Wikimedia Commons)

Dragon Arum

Dracunculus vulgaris

Also known as Voodoo Lily, Stink Lily, Snake Lily, Black Arum

At a glance

Family

Araceae (arum family)

Type

Tuberous perennial

Parts used

None for eating or medicine; the corm and berries are toxic and it is grown purely as an ornamental

Size

Leaves and flower spike reach 3 to 4 feet tall; the corm grows 3 to 4 inches across

Bloom

Late spring, a single dramatic flower spike that opens for only a few days

Habitat

Rocky hillsides, scrubland, olive groves, and roadside verges across the Mediterranean, especially Greece, Crete, and the Balkans

Acquisition

Grow or buy

This plant in HerbSense

Key benefits

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Dramatic garden focal point

Draws pollinating flies

Thrives in poor, dry soil

Naturalizes in Mediterranean beds

Traditional uses

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Dragon arum has never been an herb of the kitchen or the medicine chest. Its fame is theatrical. For centuries it has grown wild across the rocky slopes of Greece and the Aegean islands, where villagers knew to give it a wide berth and children were warned off its glossy purple-black spike. In some old Cretan households the corm was, in truly hard famine years, boiled and leached at length before anyone would consider touching it, a desperate practice from a hungry past rather than a remedy, and one no modern grower should ever repeat. Its real legacy is as a plant of astonishment, prized in Mediterranean and cottage gardens for the sheer spectacle of its bloom.

How to grow & use it

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Pairs well with

✦Euphorbia characias
✦Iris unguicularis
✦Cyclamen hederifolium

Substitutes

✦Arum italicum
✦Amorphophallus konjac

Choose it when

“When your spring garden could use one glorious, slightly sinister surprise.”

Did you know?

The dark spadix at the center of the bloom can warm itself several degrees above the surrounding air through a process called thermogenesis, a trick that helps carry its rotting-meat odor further on the breeze and draws in the carrion flies and beetles that pollinate it.

Safety

Every part of Dracunculus vulgaris, especially the corm and the berries that follow the bloom, is loaded with needle-shaped calcium oxalate crystals. Chewing or swallowing any part causes immediate, intense burning and swelling of the lips, tongue, and throat, and the fresh sap can irritate skin and eyes on contact, so gloves are wise when dividing corms. It is not used in herbal medicine today and should be kept well away from small children and curious pets, who may be drawn to its bright red berry spike later in summer. If any part is ever swallowed, or if sap gets in the eyes, contact a doctor, a veterinarian, or poison control right away rather than trying to treat it at home, and talk to a qualified professional before growing anything unfamiliar around children or animals.