Arisaema consanguineum

Arisaema consanguineum is a tuberous perennial of the Araceae, native to the Himalaya, China and Southeast Asia, growing in moist montane forest and shaded slopes. It grows each year from a flattened underground corm, sending up a single tall, mottled stalk topped by one large, radiate leaf divided into numerous narrow, drooping leaflets arranged like the spokes of an umbrella, each often ending in a fine thread-like tip. The inflorescence is the characteristic aroid spadix wrapped in a hooded green-and-white striped spathe, with a slender appendage projecting from the hood. Female plants later bear a dense cluster of bright red berries. The whole plant, especially the corm, is rich in irritant calcium oxalate raphides and is acrid and toxic when raw. It is recognised by its solitary radiate leaf and snake-like striped spathe.