Symplocarpus foetidus (Linnaeus) Salisbury ex W.P.C. Barton. Common name: Skunk Cabbage. Phenology: Early Jan-Apr; Jul-Sep. Habitat: Seepage-fed bogs and nonalluvial swamps. Distribution: NS and s. QC west to MN, south to n. NC, e. SC (discovered in 2024), ne. TN, s. OH, and IL.
Origin/Endemic status: Native
Synonymy ⓘ: = AqW, C, Can, F, FNA22, G, GW1, Il, K4, Mi, NE, NY, Pa, RAB, Tat, Tn, Va, W, WV; = Spathyema foetida (L.) Raf. — S, S13
Links to other floras: = Symplocarpus foetidus - FNA22
Wetland Indicator Status:
- Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain: OBL
- Eastern Mountains and Piedmont: OBL
- Great Plains: OBL
- Midwest: OBL
- Northcentral & Northeast: OBL
Heliophily ⓘ: 5
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Horticultural Information
Intro: Strong-smelling, low, fleshy perennial that emerges in late-winter in seepage-fed bogs and non-alluvial swamps.
Stems: Stem a thick, underground rhizome that sends up the fleshy inflorescence and, later, the leaves.
Leaves: Leaves basal and clustered, emerging after flowers, petioles lengthening over time, broadly oval, 6-24 in.long, with netted veins and entire margins; smells like cabbage when bruised.
Inforescence:
Flowers: Flowers completely cover a short-stalked, round to oval spadix that is mostly enclosed by a purple-mottled, fleshy spathe with in-rolled margins. Flowers yellowish or reddish, consisting of 4 perianth segments.
Fruits: Fruit a cluster of fleshy berries embedded in the spadix.
Comments: Through a chemical process, the flowers create heat, which can melt snow surrounding the spadix.
Height: 1-2 ft.
plant sale text:
bloom table text:
description: Strong-smelling, low, fleshy perennial that emerges in late-winter in seepage-fed bogs and non-alluvial swamps.
stems: Stem a thick, underground rhizome that sends up the fleshy inflorescence and, later, the leaves.
leaves: Leaves basal and clustered, emerging after flowers, petioles lengthening over time, broadly oval, 6-24 in.long, with netted veins and entire margins; smells like cabbage when bruised.
inflorescence:
flowers: Flowers completely cover a short-stalked, round to oval spadix that is mostly enclosed by a purple-mottled, fleshy spathe with in-rolled margins. Flowers yellowish or reddish, consisting of 4 perianth segments.
fruits: Fruit a cluster of fleshy berries embedded in the spadix.
comments: Through a chemical process, the flowers create heat, which can melt snow surrounding the spadix.
cultural notes:
germination code:
native range: eastern North America