Yellow Skunk Cabbage - Plant

This type of marsh plant has a thick rhizome. Plant these rhizomes in swampy soil. To do this, dig a wide hole, perhaps improving the soil with humus, maybe some sand. The ideal planting depth is 2 or 3 times as deep as the rhizome. They can be planted up to 5 cm underwater but can also be planted at the edge of a pond. Maintain a planting distance of 70 cm as the leaves grow very long.

If you have enough space on your patio or decking, it would be great fun to plant Skunk Cabbage in a nice stone planter. Yellow Skunk Cabbage should only be planted in a watertight pot that does not drain. Use good pond soil and plant the rhizome 2 or 3 times deeper than it is thick. Beware of frost! Plants are not only more sensitive to cold in the winter but a pot filled with water can burst if allowed to freeze. Store in a frost-free, cool shed over the winter period.

This plant is native to Northwest America. A similar plant (Lysichiton camtschatcensis) with large white bracts grows in Siberia. Both plants are of the same family (Araceae).

The plant attracts insects – the plant emits a particular scent by raising the temperature in the flower spike and so evaporating and spreading its pheromones. There is a definite rise in temperature (of several degrees!) around the spike. This phenomenon is noted among other varieties of Araceae.

This easily grown plant is very undemanding. Most important is that the soil it stands in never dries out. They prefer really wet soil, summer and winter. Due to their early flowers and striking colour you can’t fail to miss them. The yellow spathe can reach 35 cm in length! Also a lovely sight - the flower spike bears red berries in the autumn! Under the right circumstances the seeds from the berries will even germinate.

This plant is very hardy and will produce more and more flowers, year upon year. The leaves still show after flowering.