COLUMN: On the trail of skunk cabbage

   With spring finally here we can all look forward to the emergence of spring flowers! As the snow melts and strength of the sun grows, some of Iowa’s first spring wildflowers are brightening our days with their much-anticipated arrival.

   Skunk cabbage, a rare and elusive Iowa early bloomer is one of the earliest spring wildflowers to emerge. As its name implies, skunk cabbage is named after the smell that is produced by the flower and somewhat cabbage shaped leaves. The pungent skunk like smell is thought to lure in early spring pollinators like flies and beetles.

   These rare plants are found in wet wooded areas usually along streams or near hillside seeps, bogs, and springs. In Iowa they can be found in scattered locations along the eastern side of the state.

   Skunk cabbage is one of a small number of plants that can generate their own heat, called thermogenesis. This ability helps them in their early blooming quest and attracts early spring insects for pollination.

   Skunk cabbage have a hood-like leaf called a spathe that encloses the spherical finger-like pedicel, called a spadix. The spadix is covered by numerous individual flowers. The mottled wine-colored hood easily blends in with the spring woodland surroundings. Once your eyes spot one or two poking out of the decomposing leaves on the forest floor, they seem to multiply and appear out of nowhere.

   As spring progresses, the cabbage like leaves unfurl in a radiating pattern. Older plants can be discerned from younger plants by their size. Only reproducing by seeds young plants are often found growing in the vicinity of the parent plants. Old large skunk cabbage have a deep root system with no taproot. Instead, dense rootstock, the thickness of a pencil, grow deep and contract to pull the plant down securing the plant into the ground. It is not known how old the oldest skunk cabbage plants are, but it is commonly stated in reference material that individual plants can live over 20 years.

   Exposed skunk cabbage leaves and stems disappear by August as they slowly dissolve making late season observation of these plants very hard. Individual plants do not produce seed until they are 5-7 years old. Berry-like fruit containing the seeds falls to the ground during the summer as the spadix decomposes.