Arum dioscoridis Sm.

A tuber (corm) plant. It keeps growing from year to year. It grows 20-30 cm high. The leaves are narrow and spearhead shaped. The leaf blades are pointed. They are 13-45 cm long. The leaf stalks are 50 cm long. The flowers have a bad smell. The leaf bract is constricted. It is pale green. It is sometimes tinged purple on the outside. It is red inside. The flower stalk is fleshy and erect. It is black-purple to dark red. It is 28 cm long.

It is a Mediterranean climate plant. It is frost hardy. It needs full sun. It often grows on rocky slopes and near the edges of streams.

The roots are cooked and eaten. The roots and leaves are steeped in vinegar and eaten. The leaves are boiled in a stew. The leaves are used for sarma in Turkey. They are rolled around a filling of rice or minced meat.

Plants are grown from tubers. They are planted 5 cm below the surface. Plants can also be grown from seed. The seed should be planted fresh after separating from the fleshy fruit.