Tubers roundish. Leaves mostly paired, each with 3 leaflets; stalk to about 50 cm long, spotted. Leaflets stalkless, elliptic to ovate, pointed, to about 15 cm long, 5 cm wide. Spathe 10-15 cm long, green to purplish outside and often striped, with a long tube variously striped inside; summer. Spadix brownish. Fruit a red berry.

A range of species is sometimes grown including:

A. candidissimum (L.) Schott from S China which has the upper spathe white to cream or pink and

A. ringens (Thunb.) Schott from Korea, Japan and China which has 'ears' at the base of the spathe blade. Syn. A. praecox Koch.

Eastern N America.

Source: Spencer, R. (2005). Araceae. In: Spencer, R.. Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 5. Flowering plants. Monocotyledons. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.