A. italicum
         D. vulgaris
         A. vulgare

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Unless otherwise noted, all pictures on this site were taken in Pelion, Greece, shown on the map below.

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View images of the Common Toad, an ugly, bulky, but really sweet creature with an interesting... nightlife.

  Veggie of the Month

Learn about the Salsify, a beautiful plant, with edible and medicinal properties, that is currently blooming in Pelion.

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Visit Mourtias, one of Pelion's most picturesque beaches on the Aegean coast.

  Exciting Site

Tour the Volos Archaeological Museum, a pretty century-old building, whose exhibits span a historical period of over 10 millennia!

  Month's Wallpaper

Download a fantastic picture of a rickety jetty in Lefokastron, Pelion, taken by Huw Jones.

Loading image. Please wait Dragon Arum (Dracunculus vulgaris) :: Argalasti 1999/05/30 :: © A.Papadopoulos Dragon Arum (Dracunculus vulgaris) :: Argalasti 1999/05/30 :: © A.Papadopoulos No image! No image! No image!

Dragon Arum

Dracunculus vulgaris

This rather bizarre plant, reminiscent of a calla lily, produces what appears to be a blossom, but, in reality, is a spathe. As it unfurls, it reveals a slender, black center appendage, known as the spadix, which can reach a total length of 25 - 135 cm (10 - 53 in). The actual flowers - both male and female - are hidden deep inside the spathe, which features a bulbous chamber.

Despite its beauty, though, this plant does have a distinct disadvantage. It relies on flies and other insects for pollination and, therefore, emits a putrid (dung and carrion-like) smell, to attract them. However, you have to get really close to the plant to perceive its fetid scent.

Some 2,500 years ago, in his treatise entitled "Enquiry into Plants",  Theophrastus wrote that the root of this plant is not edible, but has pharmaceutical usages. Unfortunately, though, he does not specify these usages. He also states that the plant derives its name, the Dragon Arum, owing to its variably multicolored shoot, which apparently, resembles a reptilian skin.

According to an article by the "Canadian Society for Pharmaceutical Sciences", entitled "Fatty acid composition of Dracunculus vulgaris Schott (Araceae) seed oil from Turkey," the tubers and the fruits with the seeds of D . vulgaris have long been in use, in Turkey, for the treatment of rheumatism and hemorrhoids, respectively. Said article can be downloaded, in PDF format, here.

Additionally, "Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases" maintain that parts of the plant are used for the treatment of cancer and, in veterinary medicine, as a parasiticide and as a remedy for skin disorders.

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Fact Sheet

Type of plant
Tall, tuberous, robust  perennial.

Flowering Season
April - July. In the Pelion region, I have only seen it bloom in late May - early June.

Known Hazards
None known.

Known Uses
Has been used to treat rheumatism, hemorrhoids and cancer. Has also been used in veterinary medicine as a parasiticide and as a remedy for skin disorders.

Habitat
Rocky places, scrub, fields, roadsides, hedgerows, dry hillsides, generally at low altitudes.

Distribution
Algeria, Corsica and Sardenia, eastwards to Turkey, including Crete, but not Cyprus.

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Taxonomy


Kingdom: Plantae (Plants); Subkingdom: Tracheobionta (Vascular plants); Superdivision: Spermatophyta (Seed plants); Division: Magnoliophyta (Flowering plants); Class: Liliopsida (Monocotyledons); Subclass: Arecidae; Order: Arales; Family: Araceae (Arum family); Genus: Dracunculus; Species: vulgaris

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Acknowledgments

The following sources have been used in preparing this page:

• "Canadian Society for Pharmaceutical Sciences"
• "Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases"

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