Arum italicum info?

I received some of these bulbs and am casting about for information. Has anyone here grown them? The DG search is down so couldn't find info that way.

I find they are slow growing but have an incredible root system. I was unsure where I wanted to plant them so kept them potted. The roots are coming out the drainage holes. I need to put them in ground for sure.

Meanwhile, the leaves have remained smaller than I expected. Do they require poor soil? Or need fertilizer? They are pretty and are not affected by freezes.

Any knowledge will be appreciated... pod

Pod, in my area these are considered weeds, yet I see they are highly prized in other areas. True about the root system, hard to eradicate if you don't want. Potting them probably a good idea, at least until you are familiar with them. Other than that, don't know much about them. In my yard they grew in a moist area and weren't that slow. But of course, plants you don't want always thrive, don't they? lol

Good info. I had heard they can be invasive. Partially why I started by potting. I had wondered if it was the seeds or roots. Guess you answered that! lol. Were yours very tall or large leafed? Trying to get a grip on what to expect.

they look like the ones in your pic. Mine came w/ the house and I promptly removed but it was a several seasons' battle. I planted asian jasmine as ground cover and that might have eventually chocked it for good. also, I never saw blooms on mine.

Asian jasmine should do it ~ I planted it along the front of the porch. DH said nothing will grow there! NOT! From 10 small starts of Asian jasmine I took cuttings and it has filled in and I whack it back regularly. He was astounded.

Now, let me see where might I plant these that I eventually want the Asian jasmine... lol

The Arum blooms are insignificant but the berries are supposed to be lovely. With my luck, this cultivar won't have blooms/berries.

photo credit given to http://www.directgardening.com/large/5069_l.jpg

Arum atalicum in my experience is not at all invasive. I planted mine in front of the garden where they get more than 6 hours of sunlight, though, other plantings do shade them out over the years, and they won't produce seeds without adequate sunlight. They're effective in rock garden, mine have not spreaded as I wished they would due to others taller plants that might have choked them out. This fall I've added quite a few more, I can't seem to have enough of those beauties. They're attractive when the berries are ripe. Bird devoured my seeds, never have I seen stray seedlings. So they couldn't spread by root system. Birds helped themselves to the seeds, I've never have a chance to see their beautiful 'invasiveness'.

Hi Kim ~ I am glad to hear of your success too! I do like these as they spring to life when everything else in brown and crunchy. I understand they like moist soil but have you noticed if they prefer a poor or fertile soil?

Podster, I have seen these be invasive in a friend's shade garden in South New Jersey. Most anything grows well in jersey. They are called the Garden State. Maybe it's the maritine influence or the sand in their soil.

I personally have 6 very nice clumps of them. I divided them earlier this year. They are very well behaved in my garden and are quite handsome. They are planted in my back bed, some in deep shade, others in dappled sun and others in a larger amount of sun, but not all day sun.

They grow between 12 & 18" tall and have beautiful leaves between 5 to 9" long. They did not berry as well this year as others, but then I was overhauling that section of bed and they probably got trampled quite a bit.

The birds or the voles devoured the berries this year, very quickly. They flower before they berry. After they berry, they die back and go dormant & then the leaves emerge in the cooler weather. I find them to be lovely plants. Mine have been here for three years. The soil is some poor, and others very well amended. The poor soil is drier and the amended soil is moister.

Stormyla ~ do I understand correctly that you see no difference in performance regardless of soil or moisture levels? If that is correct, that will help me decide where to plant it. How do they overwinter for you?

Yes, that is correct, Podster. They are very happy and green all winter long. I love seeing them nodding their heads above the snow, or today, that would be ice.

Oh I am so sorry, ice is not good! I promise I won't complain too much about being cold.

Don't worry, Podster. I was lucky and didn't have to leave the house today. Here's the table arrangement that I made for my deck yesterday completely crystallized in ice. Today I had to make some for indoors and had left the fir branches on the deck last night.. They would not melt and finally I had to keep swatting them against the house to crack the ice off. What a mess when they got inside, but it was too slippery to make them outside.

Pod, my Arum are planted in a moist area, this past year they didn't do well (no berries), but currently the leaves are nice & pretty. I've a friend he planted these in moist yet enriched soil with goat's manure, and boys didn't they thrive and gave lots of berries. He said to plant those berries about an inche deep in the falls and they adapt well in most dappled shade areas.

editted for typos.

This message was edited Jan 17, 2009 9:32 AM

Thanks for the input Kim. I'm thinking I know where I will plant them.

Stormyla ~ that is a pretty ice arrangement! LOL At least you are not devastated by an icestorm. If one should visit here, it would take out trees and power lines. The longest we were out of electricity was a fierce icestorm that left us in the dark for 10 days. Tough when it is cold too. Think I'll throw another log on the fire... 8 )

I have Arum italicum 'Marmoratum' planted in mostly shade under a Cinnamomum camphora tree. They make a lovely patch of green coming up in the fall and staying green all winter with white/cream blossoms and orange/red berries in the spring. In British gardening books they are called 'Lords and Ladies' and are highly valued for their white lace marked leaves used in bouquets with spring flowers. In 10 years mine have slowly multiplied, probably due to the poor soil and the fact that the invasive netted roots of the camphor tree suck out the moistureand nutrients. I am just pleased that anything survives under that tree, but have also found some euphorbia and some hellebores that do. Another bonus for me is that the arum are gopher resistant due to irritating sap so I do not have to plant them in wire baskets.

Chris, For me it's the voles. I have 200 Hosta planted in wire pots. You're right the Arum are not bothered. Darned nasty critters!!

Good to know that! We are being invaded by those buddies. Moles ~ I think. From their tunnels, I don't expect to have cannas next spring.

ChrisW ~ what covers that area when the Arum foliage dies down? Or does it stay green all year for you?

Podster,
During the summer/ early fall when the arums are dormant, that area is mostly just bare dirt. My focus at that time shifts to some other beds where I have dahlias and summer vegs. I do have some clumps of Japanese anemones / Japanese windflowers (Anemone hupehensis ) that come to life in the summer and screen part of the bare arum area. There is no irrigation in that bed and although I give the anemones a drink with the hose to keep them blooming the arums don't seem to respond until the time is 'right'. I have a pile of chips from a couple of small trees that were removed to open up an area close to the house, so I may just cover the bare dirt with that. The anemones would probably benefit from the mulch, too.

Chris

Thanks Chris ~ I was wondering if you had found anything to interplant with them.

When I got these plants in, they had foliage. They promptly died back and I've waited all summer to see the foliage. I do hope these (unknown cultivar) grow a bit taller than they are now. 3-4 inches only.

Podster, I have Spring Bulbs and nice clumps of Iris Reticulata planted between my Arum clumps. The spring bulb foliage dies back about June, but the Iris's foliage persists and spreads each year almost to the Arum area. Just about the time the Arum leaves start to emerge is the time to separate the Iris clumps. They spread very vigorously.

Moles create mounds of dirt at their entrance holes. There are no mounds outside of the vole tunnels. You could actually have moles and voles. Voles will use Mole and Groundhog tunnels to live and run in.

Moles eat mostly bugs and creatures. Voles eat plants and trees. Check out www.voles.com.

There are no openings... I bet it is voles. Let me go check out your link. Thanks...

Hi Pod, this is the pix of my A. italicum. These were planted several years past. Over the years it hasn't expanded any. Only last year I missed its fruits/berries. They may have been shaded out by other tall plants in the vicinity. I was out there in the garden mesmerized over my early budding Daffodils and saw these so I took a pix for you.

Thanks for the photo Kim. Those are lovely. I can't imagine everyone not enjoying seeing them when everything else is brown and bleak. What do you have growing on that trellis in summer?

That was some other story - the trellis. Let me tell you! I thought I planted some hybrid Clematis for the trellis. It turn out a stray seedling of Sweet Autumn Clematis. Needless to say when it took off and grew wild, I was overjoy, only 'til it begun to put out flowers! The vines was irradicated, it shaded out everything under its path!

Aha ~ and it is now outta there? How did you manage to erradicate it? I need to wipe out some wild honeysuckle and don't know where to begin.

Wild honey suckles is the pit! Hubby and I tried with the brush and stumps killer in a vicid liquid form. Wait until the spring when its vegitative growth is active. Cut the vine, use a pain brush and pain the fresh cut ends. These works agains chinese privets and many other nuisanes weeds in the garden.

It has fresh growth right now. I need to tackle it and have thought about digging, pulling, spraying. Offta ~ what a job. Thanks for the info...

Pod, just some additional info. on Arum italicum's seed sowing I thought you may be interested. On Oct. 10th I sew some of these seeds outdoor. They're now coming up, look:

Mine do well in quite poor dry soil under a conifer hedge. They regularly produce the berries and I have found seedlings appearing round about. They are not invasive for me. They are a very useful plant for the area I have them in.

I was advised to sow them in crooks and cranies crivices in a rock garden, I tried some in the shady area under big Gum tree's canopy. These new planting will be tranformed with these little jewels red berries later in the season, I hope. ^_^

Well, mine are officially in the ground ~ thanks to y'all. I was amazed at the large root system these small plants had. I wonder if the nooks and cranies and crevasses in the rock garden will offer enough room for the roots on these. Time will tell.

Can anyone tell me, how tall to these get and what size if the leaf?

Pod,
Those that I've are no more than 10" to a foot tall on the leaves, the berries stalks are slightly taller.

Thanks Kim, I am glad to know that. That will make them just right where I planted them. I don't know why but thought from photos that the leaves on these were larger. Just an illusion I guess.

I've seen two different varieties, one with more prominent white veins on deep dark leaves, other is slightly lighter green with less prominent veins on them. I've transplanted some of those and will make note next year, and see if there are more differences b/w the two. At the mean time, I'll try to winter sow some more of the seeds.
Take care,
Kim

Are these seeds you harvested from your own plants?

No, a local gardening friend whose the two different A. italicum I saw. He gave me a bag full of the seeds in the Fall and I haven't planted them all.

I am guessing summer sun will not be a problem as the plant is dormant at that time?

It's recommended for the dappled shady area. Though the one that I planted in years past as posted above (by the trellis) is facing South. Not a problem there.

Good to hear. The sun is dim in this spot in the winter. The bulbs in ground will be shaded by groundcover in summer.

Pod, I'll post a couple pics. showing the two different kinds of A. italicums that I've. See this one large leave? The veins are visible, but not as prominent, like the next pic.