Araceae

Arum Family

Arisaema costatum (Wall.) Mart.

Cobra Lily

Nepali:

An easy to recognize tubular flower with stripes on the hood and a long tendril hanging under a short spike from the tip of the hood. The leaves are in threes with a raised vein on the underneath side. It appears in June at 1900m to 2400m in the Phulchowki forest.

Arisaema nepenthoides (Wall.) Mart.

Himalayan or Pitcher Cobra Lily

Nepali: Tuwa

A plant we call a Cobra Lily because the spathe feels like snakeskin. The light color is pale green with purple stripes and mottling on the spathe and a small light green spadix under the hood. It is found in the Eastern Himalayas from Central Nepal east. On Phulchowki it was at 2600m on a back trail near the army camp. It flowers from April to June.

Arisaema tortuosum (Wall.) Schott

Whip-cord Lily or Jack in the Pulpet

Nepali: Serpako Makai or Baanko

These amazing plants are called "Jack in the Pulpit" or "whip-cord" lily descriptive of the central curling "tongue" showing from under the spathe's hood. Leaves are more round than long. They have a long stem that reddens with age. Later in the fall, a cluster of red berries appears on the remains of the spathe. This is called the serpent's corn in Nepali. The blooming period lasts from the end of June to mid-July. They are found at 1900m on Phulchowki.

Arisaema concinnum Schott

Chinese Cobra Lily

Nepali: Mitinee Baako

This lily has an umbrella cluster of leaves above the spathe. The stems and spathe are light green. The lid of the spathe has a short extension that peaks out from under the umbrella. It is found across the Himalayas from Pakistan to Myanmar at elevations ranging from 1600m to 2400m.