Arum maculatum

Scientific profile

Arum maculatum is a tuberous, non-woody, terrestrial herbaceous perennial native in Great Britain. It sprouts in late winter to early spring from a rhizomatous tuber 3–6 cm long and 2–2.5 cm thick. The petiole is terete to D-shaped in cross-section, 9–53 cm long and 6–11 mm wide, mid- to deep green. The leaf blade is sagittate-hastate to oblong-hastate or oblong-lanceolate-hastate, 7–27 cm long and 3.5–19 cm wide, with an acute to obtuse apex and a broad-leaved texture, mid- to deep green and often lightly to heavily marked. The mean plant height is 0.23 m and the leaf area averages 9170 mm². Blooming occurs from April to June. The species forms arbuscular mycorrhizas and occurs in fresh, moderately moist conditions, on calcareous or basic, nutrient-rich sites with low disturbance severity (0.69) and moderately warm temperatures. Its diaspore mass is about 35 mg. It is not currently threatened (Red List *).