The description of the parts does not reflect the impact of the whole, a subtle, rich, textural effect that one does not expect of a plant stem.
The inflorescence, to my eye, is bizarre, if not grotesque. The spathe can reach twenty-four inches in diameter (60 cm)! The spadix can top twenty-seven inches (70 cm). Small tubers have a longer spathe than spadix.
This is not a flower for the faint of heart or nose; its fetor is on a par with its size. Some recommend removal of the inflorescence before it matures to encourage leaf growth and avoid the reek. If allowed to flower, those producing large inflorescence will rest for the balance of the season, putting up their leaf during the next growth period. This is a deciduous species.
The tubers, which can weigh more than seventeen pounds (8 kg), have historically been grown as a food crop in Asia and the Indo-pacific regions. While found through the tropics, from Madagascar east to India, Indochina, China, Polynesia and northern Australia, the long history of cultivation has obscured the natural distribution because many specimens found in the wild are likely escapees from cultivation.
The tubers can often be encountered in Indian markets and are eaten prepared much like potatoes, by roasting or boiling. One reference I found indicates another English name for it is the Telugu potato. Offsets are produced every season, reaching about four inches (10 cm) long. This is one of the species whose tubers can be dry stored when dormant.
This species is hardy in humid tropical areas, planted in rich, well-drained soil, in a sheltered position. It has been grown year around in the ground successfully as far north as Greensboro, NC (USDA zone 7), and there is a chance it might prove hardy in other areas of zone 7, but the jury is out until someone does it and reports this fact. Where it is not hardy, it can be grown as a container plant.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
