Amorphophallus Blume ex Decne.

Amorphophallus (en)

Genus

Angiosperms > Alismatales > Araceae

Characteristics

Herbs, terrestrial, small to massive. Stem subterranean, tuberous, rarely a chain of tubers or a true rhizome; rhizome ± creeping. Leaves usually solitary, rarely paired or more; petiole terete, rarely angulate, shallowly grooved, or partly rugulose, rarely entirely verrucate or hairy; leaf blade decompound, divided into 3 main segments; main segments equally long or anterior shorter than posterior ones (blade ± subpedate); rachises naked, narrowly or broadly winged and often carrying supernumerary leaflets on proximal parts; bulbils sometimes developing on leaves, either epiphyllar, intercalary (developing inside rachis), or half-epiphyllar (base developing in rachis, apex exposed beyond rachis). Inflorescence 1, rarely 2 or 3 (synflorescence) or more per season (then developing from different buds on stem), epigeal, rarely partly buried, solitary or simultaneous with or directly preceding leaf development, rarely emerging after leaf development. Spathe base convolute, rarely open or connate, not or clearly separated from limb by a constriction, outside variously colored, variously shaped, often cymbiform or campanulate, rarely funnel-shaped; limb erect, spreading, oblique, or arching. Spadix sessile or shortly stipitate; female zone contiguous with male zone or separated from it by a sterile zone; flowers sometimes surrounded by staminodes; female flowers consisting of 1 pistil; ovary sessile or shortly stipitate, 1-4-loculed, with 1 ovule per locule, basifixed, or rarely axillary ca. halfway up ovary; style present or (nearly) absent, clearly separated from ovary or less so, sometimes with apical projections ("branches") extending beyond stigma; sterile zone (when present) covered with staminodes, rarely partly or entirely naked; male zone cylindric, fusiform, conic, or obconic; male flowers consisting of (1-)3-6(-8) stamens; stamens depressed or elongate; filaments present or nearly absent, separated or partly or entirely fused within a flower or rarely fused between adjacent flowers; anthers bithecal; thecae 2-celled (with 2 pollen sacs), rarely 1-celled; pores apical, rarely lateral or subterminal; pollen inaperturate, globose or elliptic, exine rarely absent, psilate, striate, verrucate, echinate, areolate, porate, fossulate, reticulate, or scabrous; appendix rarely absent, contiguous with male zone or separated by a constriction or a short stipe, sometimes with large longitudinal folds or ± irregular deep cracks. Berries crowded or distant, ripening red, rarely blue, globose, ovoid, or narrowly elliptic, smooth or rarely verrucate, 1-4-seeded. Seeds usually with a distinct raphe; endosperm absent.
More
Medium-sized to very large acaulescent herbs, seasonally dying back and dormant; stem a usually subglobose tuber. Leaf normally solitary subtended by several basal cataphylls; petiole erect, cylindric, not pulvinate apically, usually smooth, rarely verrucose (A. paeoniifolius), often conspicuously spotted; blade widely spreading, in outline forming a shallow inverted cone, tripartite, each major segment highly divided subpinnately or ± irregularly; ultimate lobes linear to broadly elliptic or ovate, with acuminate tips and broadly decurrent bases; venation of the ultimate lobes penniform, forming inframarginal veins on each side. Inflorescence normally produced before (more rarely with) appearance of leaves; peduncle normally shorter than petiole. Spathe usually with convolute basal portion forming cylindric to bowl-shaped tube, upper portion usually ± expanded, much broader, often with undulate margins. Spadix with basal pistillate portion contiguous with central staminate portion or separated by a short naked interstice, apical portion a variously shaped, sterile, ± smooth (rarely rugose or staminodial), terminal appendix, spongy fibrous within. Flowers unisexual, without perigon. Stamens usually densely congested, in groups of up to 6 (rarely more), sometimes connate basally; anthers usually sessile, more rarely with distinct filaments, dehiscing by apical pores (rarely by transverse slits); connective usually thick. Pistils usually densely congested, sometimes ± distant; ovary 1–4-locular; ovules 1 per locule on basal to axile placentas; style often elongated, sometimes lacking; stigma subglobose or variously lobed, often brightly coloured. Berries borne in ± cylindrical infructescence, 1–several-seeded. Seeds smooth, lacking endosperm.
Small to gigantic, generally deciduous, cormous (rarely rhizomatous), geophytic herbs. Leaf usually solitary, subtended by membranous evanescent cataphylls; petiole erect, sheathing only in lowermost subterranean part, often mottled, sometimes warty, spongy inside; blade rarely pedate, usually highly compound with 3 repeatedly ‘dichotomous’ rachises, with ultimate branches bearing ±pinnately-arranged petiolulate to sessile to partly confluent, mostly elliptic leaflets with brochidodromous venation. Inflorescence solitary, usually produced in absence of leaves, often saproentomophilous and foul-smelling, occasionally sweetly fragrant; peduncle short or like petiole; spathe narrowly ovate and simple to very large and campanulate, variously coloured, deliquescent; spadix mostly sessile, monoecious; female zone contiguous with male (in Australia); pistils naked; male zone ostensibly a mass of stamens or male flowers ±definable, atepalate; anthers sessile, ±truncate; appendix well developed, finger-like to grotesquely gnarled. Infructescence often on elongated peduncle. Fruits ovoid, c. 1–2 (–5) cm long, blue to red.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support -
Foliage retention
Sexuality monoecy
Pollination -
Spread -
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Root system rhizome
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Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
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Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

Uses -
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
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Images

Amorphophallus unspecified picture

Distribution

Amorphophallus world distribution map, present in Angola, Andorra, Australia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Bangladesh, Central African Republic, China, Congo, Cook Islands, Cabo Verde, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Liberia, Moldova (Republic of), Madagascar, Mali, Myanmar, Mozambique, Nigeria, Nepal, Philippines, Korea (Democratic People's Republic of), Sudan, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Seychelles, Chad, Togo, Thailand, Taiwan, Province of China, Tanzania, United Republic of, Uganda, Viet Nam, Samoa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:331135-2
WFO ID wfo-4000001656
COL ID 8VTPH
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID 446115
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Amorphophallus Pseudodracontium

Lower taxons

Amorphophallus mangelsdorffii Amorphophallus operculatus Amorphophallus sinuatus Amorphophallus vogelianus Amorphophallus andranogidroensis Amorphophallus croatii Amorphophallus erythrororrhachis Amorphophallus fuscus Amorphophallus gallowayi Amorphophallus glaucophyllus Amorphophallus xiei Amorphophallus ranchanensis Amorphophallus prolificus Amorphophallus reflexus Amorphophallus schmidtiae Amorphophallus serrulatus Amorphophallus tuberculatus Amorphophallus suwidjianus Amorphophallus albus Amorphophallus angulatus Amorphophallus ankarana Amorphophallus annulifer Amorphophallus antsingyensis Amorphophallus aphyllus Amorphophallus asterostigmatus Amorphophallus atroviridis Amorphophallus barthlottii Amorphophallus baumannii Amorphophallus bonaccordensis Amorphophallus borneensis Amorphophallus boyceanus Amorphophallus brachyphyllus Amorphophallus bulbifer Amorphophallus calabaricus Amorphophallus canaliculatus Amorphophallus chlorospathum Amorphophallus cicatricifer Amorphophallus cirrifer Amorphophallus commutatus Amorphophallus consimilis Amorphophallus costatus Amorphophallus coudercii Amorphophallus cruddasianus Amorphophallus curvistylis Amorphophallus dactylifer Amorphophallus declinatus Amorphophallus decussilvae Amorphophallus discophorus Amorphophallus dracontioides Amorphophallus dunnii Amorphophallus eburneus Amorphophallus echinatus Amorphophallus elatus Amorphophallus elliotii Amorphophallus excentricus Amorphophallus forbesii Amorphophallus galbra Amorphophallus gallaensis Amorphophallus gliruroides Amorphophallus glossophyllus Amorphophallus gomboczianus Amorphophallus gracilior Amorphophallus haematospadix Amorphophallus harmandii Amorphophallus hetterscheidii Amorphophallus hirsutus Amorphophallus hirtus Amorphophallus hottae Amorphophallus impressus Amorphophallus incurvatus Amorphophallus infundibuliformis Amorphophallus interruptus Amorphophallus johnsonii Amorphophallus kiusianus Amorphophallus konjac Amorphophallus konkanensis Amorphophallus krausei Amorphophallus lambii Amorphophallus lewallei Amorphophallus linearis Amorphophallus linguiformis Amorphophallus longicomus Amorphophallus longiconnectivus Amorphophallus longispathaceus Amorphophallus longistylus Amorphophallus longituberosus Amorphophallus luzoniensis Amorphophallus lyratus Amorphophallus macrorhizus Amorphophallus margaritifer Amorphophallus margretiae Amorphophallus maximus Amorphophallus maxwellii Amorphophallus mekongensis Amorphophallus mildbraedii Amorphophallus minor Amorphophallus mossambicensis Amorphophallus mulleri Amorphophallus mullendersii Amorphophallus napalensis Amorphophallus napiger Amorphophallus obscurus Amorphophallus ochroleucus Amorphophallus pendulus Amorphophallus plicatus Amorphophallus preussii Amorphophallus purpurascens Amorphophallus rhizomatosus Amorphophallus rostratus Amorphophallus rugosus Amorphophallus sagittarius Amorphophallus salmoneus Amorphophallus sizemoreae Amorphophallus smithsonianus Amorphophallus sparsiflorus Amorphophallus spectabilis Amorphophallus subcymbiformis Amorphophallus symonianus Amorphophallus tonkinensis Amorphophallus abyssinicus Amorphophallus albispathus Amorphophallus amygdaloides Amorphophallus angolensis Amorphophallus angustispathus Amorphophallus bufo Amorphophallus hayi Amorphophallus hildebrandtii Amorphophallus hewittii Amorphophallus lanuginosus Amorphophallus merrillii Amorphophallus opertus Amorphophallus paucisectus Amorphophallus perakensis Amorphophallus polyanthus Amorphophallus pusillus Amorphophallus putii Amorphophallus pygmaeus Amorphophallus richardsiae Amorphophallus scaber Amorphophallus scutatus Amorphophallus staudtii Amorphophallus stuhlmannii Amorphophallus tinekeae Amorphophallus titanum Amorphophallus variabilis Amorphophallus venustus Amorphophallus verticillatus Amorphophallus yuloensis Amorphophallus yunnanensis Amorphophallus atrorubens Amorphophallus bequaertii Amorphophallus brevispathus Amorphophallus carneus Amorphophallus corrugatus Amorphophallus eichleri Amorphophallus elegans Amorphophallus gracilis Amorphophallus henryi Amorphophallus koratensis Amorphophallus manta Amorphophallus nicolsonianus Amorphophallus obovoideus Amorphophallus palawanensis Amorphophallus saraburensis Amorphophallus saururus Amorphophallus spectabilis Amorphophallus sumawongii Amorphophallus sylvaticus Amorphophallus synandrifer Amorphophallus taurostigma Amorphophallus tenuispadix Amorphophallus tenuistylis Amorphophallus teuszii Amorphophallus zenkeri Amorphophallus bangkokensis Amorphophallus perrieri Amorphophallus crispifolius Amorphophallus ferruginosus Amorphophallus adamsensis Amorphophallus hemicryptus Amorphophallus nicolaii Amorphophallus pulchellus Amorphophallus kienluongensis Amorphophallus flotoi Amorphophallus fallax Amorphophallus barbatus Amorphophallus claudelii Amorphophallus khammouanensis Amorphophallus natolii Amorphophallus thaiensis Amorphophallus kuznetsovii Amorphophallus lanceolatus Amorphophallus macrophyllus Amorphophallus terrestris Amorphophallus arcuspadix Amorphophallus bolikhamxayensis Amorphophallus brevipetiolatus Amorphophallus asper Amorphophallus goetzei Amorphophallus hohenackeri Amorphophallus gigas Amorphophallus prainii Amorphophallus beccarii Amorphophallus coaetaneus Amorphophallus kachinensis Amorphophallus kiusiana Amorphophallus aberrans Amorphophallus julaihii Amorphophallus juliae Amorphophallus dzui Amorphophallus lacourii Amorphophallus mysorensis Amorphophallus pilosus Amorphophallus bubenensis Amorphophallus josefbogneri Amorphophallus laoticus Amorphophallus lunatus Amorphophallus myosuroides Amorphophallus ongsakulii Amorphophallus niahensis Amorphophallus bognerianus Amorphophallus carnea Amorphophallus paeoniifolius