Description
Arisarum simorrhinum variegated form, ex Morocco, growing in a 9cm pot.
This is a very special little plant indeed, originally collected by the late Michael Salmon in Morocco. All other location details and collection numbers have been sadly lost. Variegated forms of Arisarum simorrhinum are seldom encountered, and those that are occasionally seen do not tend to have very pronounced variegation. However, in this form, the pattern is strong and distinct.
Although I’ve been growing this for a few years now, I have yet to actually see a flower and personally confirm the ID. However, it has come to me via a very reliable and knowledgable source and I have no reason to doubt that this is the true Arisarum simorrhinum, and not a form of Arisarum vulgare.
Growing from small tubers or slender finger-like rhizomes, Arisarum simorrhinum makes low growing clumps of foliage from late Autumn through to the Spring. Making no stems, each leaf emerges directy from the rhizome. The inflorescence is held beneath the foliage, and is only a few cm in height.
Tender when planted outside, it seems to tolerate light or transient frosts under glass. Well suited to an alpine house grown on a typical Mediterranean bulb cycle in a well drained sandy mix.