Pig butt arum
Helicodiceros muscivorus
It’s not until you come face to face…or perhaps I should say nose to nose with a pig butt arum that you realize it isn’t a grand horticultural April Fool’s prank. Indeed, I had pause when I first heard tales of such a plant…so much so, that the search was on, and Helicodiceros muscivorus, also known as dead horse arum, had vaulted to the top of my “most wanted” plant list. I’ve publicly admitted to having a penchant for the more quirky plants nature has created, so the pig butt arum qualifies on many levels. Indeed, Helicodiceros muscivorus, as it’s correctly known, is the horticultural Hunchback of Notre Dame…grotesquely fascinating, and with truly offensive body odor while it’s mating. For those who study Latin, the term “muscivorus” means fly eating…how charming!
Finally in 2001, I acquired two plants…one from local aroid expert, Alan Galloway, and a second from a European Botanical Garden with which we swap plants. The tubers were small, but finally matured in 2004. and I was able to indulge my olfactory senses. The floral smell of pig butt arum was never designed to sell plants to rose fanciers, but instead was developed to mimic the dead animal smell of nearby seabirds, whose hygiene ranks right there with a poorly ventilated outhouse. Of course, the fragrance is really designed to attract insect pollinators, whose sense of smell is…well, less discriminating than most Homo sapiens. Indeed, the pungent aroma was exactly what I remembered from childhood when I dug fishing worms in the pig pen, only to be unceremoniously chased out once the pigs detected bacon on my breath.
I planted one Helicodiceros muscivorus in the shade and one in the sun, only to realize after one season that shade was not its friend. Although the inflorescence is the main reason to grow pig butt arum, the foliage is equally fascinating. The bizarre three-dimensional, glaucous, fleshy leaves emerge from an underground tuber in early March, unexpectedly poking through the ground overnight like a zombie from the grave. The 18” tall spikes of unique foliage, which remind me of the Krypton ice castles in Superman I, sit alone until late April, when a green floral tube emerges from the center of the foliage, first standing slightly shy of upright like the flag over Iwa Jima.
Then, over the next few days, the floral tube declines to a 90 degree angle, at which time it unfurls to reveal an 8” wide x 14” long fleshy section of pig-like skin, replete with appropriate fuzzy hairs. The pig skin is part of the inflorescence is known as a spathe…a term most folks know better as the white part of its more socially acceptable cousin, the peace lily, or the red of an anthurium. From the base of the spathe emerge the rest of its sex organs, known as a spadix…which resembles a hairy brown pig tail…hence the common name. While the smell of Helicodiceros muscivorus only lasts a few hours when it’s at its reproductive peak, there should be plenty of time to cut a flower and send it to school with your children for a memorable show and tell.
Home for a pig butt arum are, three islands in the Mediterranean …Corsica, Sardinia, and the Balearics, where it can be found growing both along the coast as well as in the adjacent steep rocky cliffs. Consequently, pig butt arum is well adapted to dry summers as well as winters as far north as Boston.
Not long after flowering, pig butt arum will go dormant for the summer…unless of course, the flies were successful in pollinating your plant, in which case you’ll have seed to plant…the best way to get more to share with friends…or with your less than favorite boss. Pig butt arum has proven very easy to grow, provided you give it four or more hours of sun during its short growing season, and well drained soils while it’s dormant. I’ll admit there are few more enjoyable gardening things in life than having a garden club tour when the pig butt arum is in full flower. Wait, I can hear the phone calls now from frantic HOA’s, adding pig butt arum to their list of prohibited plants.
– Tony Avent