Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Scientific Name: Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

General Information
Usda Symbol	PETH8
Group	Monocot
Life Cycle	Perennial
Growth Habits	Forb/herb
Native Locations	PETH8

Plant Guide

Use a soil moisture meter to monitor the soil moisture where Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley is planted.

Fact Sheet

Uses

Expansive stands of arrow arum often develop in the marginal waters it inhabits. The foliage and stems in these stands create a wave deflecting or buffering barrier, while the root masses knit together and stabilize the submerged sediments. The roots and shoots translocate methane from the substrate. Arrow arum fruit is a preferred food of wood ducks, and is also eaten by muskrats and rails. The foliage is seldom damaged, providing good cover to waterfowl, wading birds, insects, and aquatic mammals.

Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status (e.g. threatened or endangered species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

Description

The bright green, smooth, succulent, arrow- to heart-shaped leaves of arrow arum (Peltandra virginica) emerge annually from perennial bulbs. The bulbs are tufted with thick fibrous roots. The 4 to 30 inch long ascending leaves are 3 to 8 inches wide, and have three prominent veins with an abrupt, sharp tip. Arrow arum is monoecious, with both male and female parts contained in a partially closed 4 to 8 inch green spathe. It blooms from May to July. As the fruit matures the entire flowering stem curves downward, immersing the spathe. The green berry-like fruit is up to 1/2 inch long, and usually contains one seed. Upon separation from the flowering stem, this floatable fruit begins to turn black.

Adaptation and Distribution

Distribution

Distribution

The native range of arrow arum is from Maine to Ontario and Michigan, south to Florida, Louisiana, and Missouri, It commonly inhabits shallow water areas of marshes, bogs, swamps, stream and river bottoms, lakes, ponds, and ditches, This emergent requires unconsolidated silty or organic sites, which are open, and saturated or inundated up to 1 foot, It will tolerate pHs of 3,0 to 9,5, and salinity up to 2 ppt, For a current distribution map, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Website, Use soil moisture sensors to measure the soil moisture of Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley., © William S, Justice Smithsonian Instituion @ USDA NRCS PLANTS

Establishment

Arrow arum predominantly relies on its seed production for re-establishment and population distribution, but it can be propagated vegetatively. There are an average of 500 cleaned seeds per pound. When the fruit of this species falls into or is stored in water, the fruit coating swells and ruptures. The seed separates, sinks, then begins to germinate if site conditions are adequate. This same seedling development process can easily be replicated in cultivated fields or in greenhouses. Vegetative propagation is by root bulb divisions. The bulbs form in layers around a root mass, which may be as deep as 8 inches. Once dug, the bulbs are broken from the root mass, then either directly planted or transplanted into containers or production beds. One mature plant may produce up to ten of these planting units.

Plant Traits

Growth Requirements

Morphology/Physiology

Reproduction

Suitability/Use

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley

Peltandra tharpii F.A. Barkley