Appearance
It grows 30–46 cm high, with equal spread. It blooms in spring with white flowers that turn to showy red fruit. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant for traditional and woodland shade gardens. Subspecies "italicum" has distinctive pale veins on the leaves, whilst subspecies "neglectum" has faint pale veins, and the leaves may have dark spots. Nonetheless, intermediates between these two subspecies also occur, and their distinctiveness has been questioned. Some gardeners use this arum to underplant with "Hosta", as they produce foliage sequentially: when the "Hosta" withers away, the arum replaces it in early winter, maintaining ground-cover. Numerous cultivars have been developed for garden use, of which "A. italicum" subsp. "italicum" 'Marmoratum' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit."Arum italicum" can be invasive in some areas.
"Arum italicum" may hybridize with "Arum maculatum". The status of two subspecies currently included in "Arum italicum", subsp. "albispathum" and subsp. "canariense", is uncertain and they may represent independent species.
In 1778, Lamarck noticed that the inflorescence of this plant produces heat....hieroglyph snipped...
Leaves, fruits and rhizomes contain compounds that make them poisonous. Notably, leaves are rich in oxalic acid; other active principles are present in other parts. The ingestion of berries, which are showy and red, can be fatal for babies and young children, as well as dogs.
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