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    • Photo of Dracunculus vulgaris flower by Danger Garden

    Photo by Danger Garden

    Used with permission, all rights reserved

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    Dracunculus vulgaris

    Also Known As

    • Arum dracunculus
    • Dragon Arum
    • Dragon Lily
    • Voodoo Lily

    Plant type

    perennial, bulb / corm / tuber, aroid

    size

    • H: 24"-36"
    • W: 18"-36"

    planting zones

    • 5a-9b

    More Options

    Dracunculus vulgaris plant details

    A complicated beauty, Dragon Arum is nothing if not attention-getting. Mottled stems poke from bare ground like spooky fingers. Plants rise like spears to 3 feet tall. The foliage has a tropical look. Once it "blooms," the deep burgundy spathe and nearly black spadix steal the show. So beautiful... so smelly. One of those plants that attracts flies with its carrion-like fragrance for a few days in summer. Orange seedpods follow in fall. Easy-going, you can plant it in sun or some shade, and give it a bit of water during the active growing season. Plant it where you can get a good look without getting too close, you definitely don't want the odor wafting into your house.

    Dracunculus vulgaris is a broadleaf deciduous perennial aroid bulb / corm / tuber with green foliage. In summer black and burgundy flowers emerge followed by orange fruit. Grows well with sun - mostly shade and regular water. Does well in average and well-drained soil. A good option if you're seeking something verticillium wilt resistant.

    CHARACTERISTICS OF Dracunculus vulgaris

    Plant type: perennial aroid bulb / corm / tuber
    Plant family: araceae
    Foliage: deciduous green
    Mature size: 18 IN - 36 IN - wide, 24 IN - 36 IN - tall
    Flowers: black and burgundy blooms in summer
    Uses: easy-to-grow, exotic, goth garden, mottled stems, pungent fragrance

    GROWING CONDITIONS for Dracunculus vulgaris

    USDA Zones: 5a - 9b
    Sun exposure: sun - mostly shade
    Watering frequency: regular
    Resistant to: verticillium wilt
    Soil needs: average and well-drained

    Nursery contributed plant descriptions

    Every year in spring I receive a few hushed phone calls which usually begin ?My ?friend" has this strange plant blooming in her garden and she doesn't remember planting it." I respond ?You've got a case of Dragon Lily." Emerging from a giant bulb like a mottled spear, the plant produces an upright, three foot stalk holding a few (often silver speckled) leaves. The stalk is topped with a lurid 18 inch burgundy spathe with a columnar purple-black spadix. It has an unpleasant ?aroma" for a few days so don't plant near your front door. Goes dormant after flowering.

    By: Phoenix Perennials and Specialty Plants Ltd.

    Weird – bizarre! You too can have ‘that voodoo that you do’ in the song! Attractive lobed foliage with a tropical look follows bloom in early summer…maroon purple spathes on tall stems highlighted with a spikey near black spadix to 20” long. Don’t plant this under your bedroom window; flower is pollinated by flies so fragrance is ‘Eau de Carrion’ and lasts a few days. Orange seeds in fall. Sun to part shade, water during growing season, happy in average to peaty soil. Easy.

    By: Secret Garden Growers

    Blooms: spring-summer, red & purple/ finger like dissected foliage Zone 6-9. 18"-32", Europe, part shade-sun, moist, well drained

    By: Keeping it Green Nursery

    A very unusual, shade loving plant that produces a tubular shaped, purplish green flower with dark purple markings which surround a blackish purple central spike, making the spike look like it has been provided its own vase. Following the bloom of the flowers, large 2'-3', finger-like, lovely green leaves emerge on mottled and speckled stems. Even if you don't like the flowers (being fly polinated, they stink for the first day they are oppened) you will love the frilly leaves!. Native to tropical Africa and Asia, these normally bloom in early summer and grow 24"-36" tall. Large blooming size tubers are 3" or so across. Zones: 6-10 , sometimes reported as hardy to zone 5

    By: Edens Blooms

    Gardening facts about Dracunculus vulgaris plant

    How to Grow Dracunculus vulgaris

    • Sun Exposure

      • sun - mostly shade

    • Water Needs

      • regular

    • Soil Needs

      • average
      • well-drained

    • Special Situation

      • verticillium wilt resistant

    Features

    • Foliage Color

      • green

    • Flower Color

      • burgundy
      • black

    • Fruit

      • orange

    • Flower Season

      • summer

    • Foliage Season

      • deciduous

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