Week of May 31, 2020

The dry spell has ended for the Florida Garden, with warm humid days punctuated by an afternoon shower, and even a rainy day every so often.  Everything seems to be blooming, including some odd plants added to the garden over the past year.  This blog will feature the VOODOO LILY, a truly bizarre plant that I purchased from the grower who sells plants at the Farmers Market.  I bought the plant for its umbrella like foliage and it’s avidity for shade.  I planted it in the far corner of our yard by the large spiral and pinecone gingers.  I watered it for a couple of days then missed a couple of days to find it withered, dying back to the ground.  I thought I had lost it, and even planted a redbud tree nearby to occupy the vacant spot.  This spring, to my surprise, a large, quite pretty, sack-like leaf emerged which then opened up to a thick, vase like bowl with a ivory round stamen about 8 inches long in the middle.  It continued for 4-5 days, when the stamen turned black and the bowl collapsed.  The whole thing is starting to smell bad, like rotting meat—thank goodness it is far from the house.  Voodoo lilies are from the Amorphophallus family and I am quite sure ours is A. Bulbiser.  They are native of East and South Asia..There are 170 or so species.  They are remarkable for several things.  First, they have a huge list of common names, mostly referring to their appearance resembling the interaction between male and female genitalia, “Lords and Ladies” being a modest example.  Second, they bloom, die back, then leaf out months later.  Third, they attract dogs and other animals to their smell of rotting meat, but are very toxic.  It appears that I need to watch this Voodoo lily carefully, as I don’t know what will happen next!