"Skunk" Cabbage?

22 Jul '06 1:52 pm

Can anyone tell me if this is what I have heard called ‘skunk’ cabbage? The leaves do not look much like it but the ‘flowers’ do.[img][/img]

Thanks,
Norvona

22 Jul '06 11:43 pm

Hi Norvona
I do believe this to be an Aglaonema most likley silver queen

This is a greathouse plant especially for low light enviorments.

24 Jul '06 1:58 am

Hey Glen,
Thanks so much. I googled Aglaoema and got quite a nice history. Too bad I didn't think to google "Skunk" Cabbage before I posted my question. Embarassed

Actually I did google it after I read your post and found a wonderful article on Spring Wildflowers. It was for children, so it was just my speed. Very Happy

I visited your homepage and we are almost neighbors...Oklahoma born and raised. You have a wonderful job...to be able to work outdoor "with" nature...what more could you ask?

Thanks again, and I may have some more mystery plants (at least to me) to ask about. Take care and keep listening to Jimmy Buffett! Have a Margarita for me. (I'm diabetic) Sad

[/img]
Norvona

25 Jul '06 1:19 pm

Seeing Skunk Cabbage in the topics-title brought back good memories. I garden in USA Zone 6, skunk cabbage grows in zone 7, but doesn't grow here. I had to go all the way to Wales to discover it. In 1988, I visited Wales in April and saw masses of it along a stream flowing downhill in Bodnant Gardens. http://www.bodnantgarden.co.uk/
I had never heard of skunk cabbage, but there it was an American plant in full bloom with water running through.

I also learned the English species has white blooms and they gave theirs a more civilized title: Lords and Ladies.

26 Jul '06 4:31 am

Hi "B"
I'm a little embarrassed about my question, but I saw a picture of a skunk cabbage bloom, very close up. and it really looked a lot like my Aglaoema blooms. Thanks to Glen in Chicago, I now know the difference. I suspect, had I ever smelled a skunk cabbage, I would have known the difference well enough. Laughing

Lords and Ladies, huh? That's an interesting title for the English version. I wonder if it smells like the American plant and if so, was that an intended affront to the aristocrats? Very Happy

Norvona

26 Jul '06 9:26 am

I have no idea. Interesting thought, though.

I've read that skunk cabbage can be used as a cut flower and doesn't smell badly unless crushed. I wouldn't know, as I have never been up close to one.

Is your plant the one many people call "Chinese Evergreen"? I've never known its real name. In your photo it looks much like it.

26 Jul '06 10:59 am

Thanks for answering Bobbie. What I don't know about plant names, etc. could fill a nice size book. When I google Chinese Evergreen and Sliver Queen (as Glen suggested) it looks like the same picture is shown. Is it two names for the same plant, Aglaonema?

The most important thing I know about plants is that, I like them...you can't have too many of them, and I can't imagine a home without any.

My house plants and the few I have on the back deck are my "gardens." Very Happy

26 Jul '06 12:32 pm

Ah, Ha! That's it. I finally took time to Google it, too.
Family Name: Araceae
Botanical Name:Aglaonema species (Siver Queen is probably a cultivated variety, it's pretty.)
Common Name: Chinese Evergreen
I agree with Glen; make nice houseplants. Following link might be of interest to you:
http://www.edmonton.ca/ArtCultAttr/ChineseEvergreen.pdf
Got to run.

26 Jul '06 12:48 pm

Thanks Bobbie,
I saved the article since we will need to repot this one soon. We've had it about eleven years and only repotted two or three times. It's over due.

Again, Thanks!

28 Dec '06 6:59 pm

Hi!

I live in BC and we have skunk cabbage growing all over the place here, wherever it's swampy and shaded in the summer. They're huge (leaves get to 3 feet in length) and, while they smell much worse when crushed, you can smell them from 10 to 15 feet away. The flowers are egg yolk yellow and very impressive. Apparently, there is a Eurasian variety that has white flowers. By the way, we have them in northern BC as well, and that is zone 2 or 3.

Cheers!

-gordonf

"Skunk" Cabbage?

"Skunk" Cabbage?

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