Italian Arum

I live in Highland Lakes, NJ. I have a plant that comes up every fall, stays green all winter (even through the snow) and sprouts more leaves in the spring. In early June, it displays green pulpit-like flowers with yellow tongues, but then dies back completely in early July. What kind of plant is this?

The mystery plant is Italian arum known botanically as Arum italicum. As the name implies it is native to Italy as well as the Mediterranean and Canary Islands. Sounds like you have the perfect growing conditions for this zone 5 to 9 hardy plant. This plant prefers full to partial shade and moist organic soils when growing. Allow the soil to go a bit drier when the plant is dormant. You can start new plants by digging and dividing the tubers when the plant is dormant.

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