Motley-stalked dragon-plant
Dracontium polyphyllum

Family: Araceae

What it is like

A taro family herb. It is like Amorphophallus. The tubers are round and 6-10 cm wide by 5-8 cm thick. They are flat on top and rounded underneath. There are a few small tubers. The tuber produces a single leaf. The leaf stalks are 1-2 m long and 2-4 cm across. They are dark green or mottled. The leaf blades spreads horizontally and can be 1 m across. The leaves are divided. There is usually one flowering shoot. There are 150-300 flowers arranged in a spiral on one stalk. There is a spathe 6-12 cm long by 3-5 cm wide. The collection of fruits are 5-16 cm long and 3-4 cm wide. The berries have 3 seeds.

There are 23 Dracontium species.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in moist forests. It grows up to 220 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Amazon, Asia, Brazil, Central America, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guianas, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pacific, Peru (country/location of origin), SE Asia, South America, Suriname, Trinidad, Venezuela, West Indies

How it is used for food

The tubers are cooked and eaten.

Edible parts

Tuber, root, corm

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from seeds or by division of the tuber.

Its other names

Local names

Adive kanda, Changuango, Drakontium latina, Guapa, Jararaca-mirim, Jiracaca, Kaat curna, Sevala

Synonyms

Amorphophallus wallisii Regel; Several