Feature Article June 3, 2004
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Jack-in-the-pulpitCall it what you want, but the Jack-in-the-pulpit, also known as Indian Turnip, Three-leaved Arum, Dragon-turnip, Devils-ear, Marsh Turnip, Priests-pintle, Lords-and-ladies or Bog Onion, as well as other names is an interesting spring plant. Even its scientific name is varied - Arisaema triphyllum, Arum triphyllum or Arisaema atrorubens.
Popping up in spring woodlands from an underground tuber or corm shaped like a turnip, it was frequently used for food by American Indians. Because the corm contains a poison, calcium oxalate, it must be boiled first to remove this, which would cause burning if it was eaten raw. Any animal which browses on the plant can be affected, though the burning sensation usually will prevent much being ingested.
The plant will produce one or two leaves on separate stems, each divided into three parts, which are 7-15 cm long, smooth-margined and net-veined. The bloom develops on a separate stem beneath the leaves. What you will first see is a modified leaf or spathe (the pulpit) which curls around and forms a funnel with a broad, pointed cap which covers a fleshy green spike called the spadix or the Jack. On this, at its base, there will be tiny, inconspicuous flowers which will be either male or female on separate plants. One source tells that the plant can alternate the sex of the flowers from year to year depending on the nutrients available - what the corm has stored as starch from the previous year. A small corm will produce a male flower which requires less energy to produce pollen than what the female flower requires. A very small corm will produce only leaves.
In late summer a thin membrane will fall away revealing a conspicuous, rounded cluster of red berries. While the leaves are rarely eaten, Wood Thrushes have been known to eat the berries. Look for this plant in low damp woods, swampy and boggy areas.
