Sacha wrote:
On 16/3/06 20:13, in article , "ned"
wrote:


"Uncle-C" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi folks. As Spring is supposedly with us I decided to take a
leisurely stroll through my local woods. There was one weed/plant
which had sprung up almost everywhere. Unfortunatly, I do not know
if it is a weed or a flowering plant native to woodland.

http://img75.imageshack.us/img75/204/plantid1vv.jpg

It's on the top left hand corner of the picture. Broad leafed with
black markings on it. The height is about 5 - 8 inches and the
grouping in small clumps. I've even had a couple spring up in the
back of my garden which backs up to a small woodland area. Any
ideas / info ??? Thanks !

'Don't think it is the Arum lily. They tend to have erect arrow
shaped leaves.
Taking into account the scale of the foreground snowdrops and
cyclamen, I reckon it is more like Lesser Celandine, Ranunculus
ficaria. That can have dark marks on the leaves.
..... see http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk/LesserCelandine.html

No, no, not Arum lily. Cuckoo pint. Arum lily is Zantedeschia
aethopica. The leaf the OP is talking about is not in the
foreground
but towards the left back. THAT is, almost certainly, the cuckoo
pint or Arum maculatum.

Yep. Got me! Strike Arum lily. Apologies for my faux pas. ......
But, I did in fact mean that I didn't think it looked like Arum
maculatum (Lords and Ladies / Cuckoo pint) because that tends to have
10 - 20 cm long arrow shaped leaves, held upright, at this time of
year. The arrow in the OPs picture is pointing (left back) at what
appears to have cordate heart shaped leaves, parallel with the ground,
of a size more apropriate to Lesser celandine ......... IMHO. :-)

--
ned

http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk
latest update 16.03.2006

"Uncle-C" wrote
snip
ps: Has anyone used the plant in their own garden to create a woodland
effect ? I have an area with a fern and some foxgloves and am
thinking of maybe getting some for that part of the garden.

Yes, I use it as I said further up the thread. It's deal for a natural
effect spring garden under a tree canopy and even copes with fairly dry
shade. You could also use snowdrops to fill space around the fern before
its leaves unfurl and perhaps add native bluebells.

--
Sue

In article , K
writes
Sue writes

"La Puce" wrote
The shape of the leaf of the OP pic bears no resemblance to the arum
leaves.

And would there be Morning Glories with broad leaves springing up in
clumps in early Spring in a British wood??

The OP's picture wasn't really showing the plant he needs to identify at
a very good angle, but Arum maculatum *does* often have dark markings,
either spots or 'marbling' - I've got some myself.

Indeed. Stace (the accepted authority on the British Flora) says "leaf
blades appearing in early spring, often blackish-purple-spotted...".



Quite agree. My arum lily has also got black marked leaves and is
nothing out of the ordinary.

Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

On 17/3/06 0:00, in article , "ned"
wrote:

Sacha wrote:
On 16/3/06 20:13, in article , "ned"
wrote:
snip

No, no, not Arum lily. Cuckoo pint. Arum lily is Zantedeschia
aethopica.
snip
Yep. Got me! Strike Arum lily. Apologies for my faux pas. ......

No problem. It's confusing when things 'share' names, even if incorrectly.

But, I did in fact mean that I didn't think it looked like Arum
maculatum (Lords and Ladies / Cuckoo pint) because that tends to have
10 - 20 cm long arrow shaped leaves, held upright, at this time of
year. The arrow in the OPs picture is pointing (left back) at what
appears to have cordate heart shaped leaves, parallel with the ground,
of a size more apropriate to Lesser celandine ......... IMHO. :-)

I see what you mean - could be. But I still think it's probably cuckoo pint
which hasn't stood upright yet! Doesn't it look rather too large for
celandine? And it's one of the things I'd expect someone would recognise
anyway. Perhaps the OP can come back a bit later and tell us what it turns
into!
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
)

ned wrote:
'Don't think it is the Arum lily. They tend to have erect arrow shaped
leaves.
Taking into account the scale of the foreground snowdrops and
cyclamen, I reckon it is more like Lesser Celandine, Ranunculus
ficaria. That can have dark marks on the leaves.
..... see http://www.bugsandweeds.co.uk/LesserCelandine.html

Yes, me too. I have some Celandine, which crept out from a pot onto the
ground and is now growing with a few arum, bluebells and digitalis
(very woodlandish on that part of our garden). The leaves of the
celandine look so much like the picture - I know that suggesting
convolvulus (or morning glory) is daft at this time of year, but the
rounded leaves reminded me of it.

Janet Tweedy wrote:
Quite agree. My arum lily has also got black marked leaves and is
nothing out of the ordinary.

I've found the one we have, Arum italicum 'Pictum' - lighter
green/yellowish veins. I've come accross the Titan which is growing at
the Eden Garden. My gawd, have you seen it?!? It's 7ft high!! A
woodland garden for dinosaurs )

Sacha writes
On 17/3/06 0:00, in article , "ned"
wrote:


But, I did in fact mean that I didn't think it looked like Arum
maculatum (Lords and Ladies / Cuckoo pint) because that tends to have
10 - 20 cm long arrow shaped leaves, held upright, at this time of
year. The arrow in the OPs picture is pointing (left back) at what
appears to have cordate heart shaped leaves, parallel with the ground,
of a size more apropriate to Lesser celandine ......... IMHO. :-)

I see what you mean - could be. But I still think it's probably cuckoo pint
which hasn't stood upright yet! Doesn't it look rather too large for
celandine?

No - depends on the soil. Saw one at our Nature Park on Sunday which I
had to have a close look at to make sure it wasn't a marsh marigold!

And it's one of the things I'd expect someone would recognise
anyway.

We've had celandine raised as an identification problem before, I think.
And a surprising number gardeners with a good knowledge of garden plants
have only the sketchiest knowledge of our native plants ... though one
might expect them to recognise it from the white variety which is sold
as a garden plant.

Perhaps the OP can come back a bit later and tell us what it turns
into!

Yes - it's always nice to find out the final outcome. The OP has said
he's pretty sure its the arum.

I'm still putting my money on the arum because of the dark markings, but
agree with Ned that the one in the picture looks celandine like. As the
OP said, the pic isn't actually of the plant he wants identified, but
one that he scanned from a book, and it is conceivable that the pic is
celandine but the woodland plant he wants identified is arum.
--
Kay