Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses - Jack-in-the-pulpit

JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT

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Arisaema triphyllum (L. ) Schott

Jefferson County, Kansas

Perennial

Height: 1-2 feet

Family: Araceae - Arum Family

Flowering Period: May, June

Also Called:

Indian turnip, parson-in-the-pulpit.

Stems:

Corm

Leaves:

Palmately compound, 1-3; stalk 10-24 inches; leaflets 3, entire, ovate to elliptic, 2.4 to 8.8 inches long, 1.2 to 5.6 inches wide, tapering to points, slightly waxy, lower surface paler than upper.

Inflorescences:

Spadix (fleshy spike of small, crowded flowers), finger-like, 2 to 3 inches long, arising on stalk adjacent to leaves; stalk 1.2 to 8 inches long, shorter than leaf stalks; spathe 3.6 to 10 inches long, surrounding or partially enclosing spadix; inner surface of spathe often purple to brownish-red with yellow parallel veins or sometimes wholly green; spathe tip arching over spadix.

Flowers:

Pistillate flowers tiny, yellow, basal on spadix; stigma short, broad; staminate flowers above pistillate; stamens 2-5, nearly sessile.

Fruits:

Berries, fleshy, spherical, 1/5 to 1/4 inch long, red, in conspicuous dense clusters; seeds 1-3.

Habitat:

Moist to intermittently dry deciduous woods, thickets, bases of moist, protected bluffs.

Distribution:

East 1/3 of Kansas

Origin:

Native

Toxicity:

The plant contains microscopic calcium oxalate crystals that cause contact irritation. If consumed, the crystals cause burning and swelling of the lips, mouth, tongue, and throat.

Forage Value:

Seldom eaten by livestock due to toxicity.

Uses:

Native Americans made a poultice of the root and used it externally to treat headaches, skin boils and abscesses, bruises, lameness, and rattlesnake bites. The roots were also boiled and the liquid used as a wash for sore eyes and as a gargle for sore throats. However, it was not swallowed because it was considered poisonous. The root was finely chopped and added to meat as a means to poison enemies. It is said that the roots can be eaten after drying or cooking them.

Comments:

The base of the spathe forms a loose, cylindrical sheath - the "pulpit" around "Jack" or the "parson".

Jack-in-the-pulpit