Brighten up dark corners at the coldest time of year with arums’ lush marbled foliage, in the dry shade under trees or alongside snowdrops – just don’t confuse them with arum lilies
WORDS NAOMI SLADE PHOTOGRAPHS ANNAÏCK GUITTENY
Bursting out gaily among the fallen leaves, the lush foliage of Arum appears just at the time that many other plants finally fade. The vibrant frill of Arum maculatum that often fills the bottom of still-dormant winter hedges might be a familiar sight on bracing strolls, but this is a plant that is rarely remarked upon, let alone considered as a garden subject, despite being both hardy and easy to grow.
All species of Arum are herbaceous perennials, and although they are sometimes referred to as arum lilies, this term is also used for ornamental South African Zantedeschia, and the two should not be confused. The leaves of plants are notably bold, spear-shaped and strikingly marked; marbled or splashed with white, yellow or silver and often with bold purple spots. Their main period of growth is from late autumn to late spring, depending on species and location, although their decorative greenery peaks in March and persists until around May.
Native to much of Europe, including the UK, Arum is a moderate-sized genus of around 28 recognised species of tuberous herbaceous perennials, the most widespread of which is Arum italicum. This is found not just in Italy, but across France and Spain as well is in the Balkans and parts of North Africa. Arum maculatum, meanwhile, is found throughout northwest and central Europe and as far south as the eastern Balkans.
There are also several southern European species that are less common and less hardy, including Arum pictum, which is native to central Italy and several Mediterranean islands including the Balearics, Corsica and Sardinia; Arum concinnatum, which is native to the southeastern Aegean Islands but is also found in southernmost mainland Greece and southwest Turkey; and large, purple-spathed Arum purpureospathum, which is confined to the island of Crete.
In the UK, the most widespread native species is A. maculatum, which means ‘spotted’, and occurs in two types: A. maculatum f. maculatum, with spotted leaves; and A. maculatum f. immaculatum, which has plain, green
