Re: Arum Oddness?

James

Odd indeed - but not unknown. There are a few Arum that, once pollinated,
will continue to produce fruits no matter how unprepossessing the
conditions. I suspect that this may be a survival strategy for the genus,
most species of which occurr in areas when the summer drought hits hard and
fast and, given that most Arum flower at the end of their growing cycle,
it's clearly advantageous to continue to produce fruits no matter what.

I've walked through a field of ripening Arum dioscorides in southern Turkey
several weeks into the summer drought with air temperatures in the mid-30s
(C) and yet the fruits have all looked fine and have, on collecting,
produced good seed.

Pete
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