Eastern skunk cabbage

Appearance

Eastern skunk cabbage has leaves which are large, 40–55 cm long and 30–40 cm broad. It flowers early in the spring when only the flowers are visible above the mud. The stems remain buried below the surface of the soil with the leaves emerging later. The flowers are produced on a 5–10 cm long spadix contained within a spathe, 10–15 cm tall and mottled purple in colour. The rhizome is often 30 cm thick.

Distribution

The eastern skunk cabbage is native to eastern North America, from Nova Scotia and southern Quebec west to Minnesota, and south to North Carolina and Tennessee. It is protected as endangered in Tennessee.

Habitat

Breaking or tearing a leaf produces a pungent but not harmful odor, the source of the plant's common name; it is also foul smelling when it blooms. The plant is not poisonous to the touch. The foul odor attracts its pollinators, scavenging flies, stoneflies, and bees. The odor in the leaves may also serve to discourage large animals from disturbing or damaging this plant which grows in soft wetland soils.

Eastern skunk cabbage is notable for its ability to generate temperatures of up to 15–35 °C above air temperature by cyanide resistant cellular respiration in order to melt its way through frozen ground,Thorington, Katherine K.: "Pollination and Fruiting Success in the Eastern Skunk Cabbage", The Journal of Biospheric Science, vol 1 no. 1 April 1999, accessed March 4, 2007,

Uses

In the 19th century the U.S. Pharmacopoeia listed eastern skunk cabbage as the drug "dracontium". It was used in the treatment of respiratory diseases, nervous disorders, rheumatism, and dropsy. In North America and Europe, skunk cabbage is occasionally cultivated in water gardens. Skunk cabbage was used extensively as a medicinal plant, seasoning, and magical talisman by various tribes of Native Americans. While not considered edible raw, because the roots are toxic and the leaves can burn the mouth, the leaves may be dried and used in soups and stews.