Jack in the pulpit is a native plant that belongs to Arum family Arisaema triphyllum grows on different parts. Leaves grow on one stalk and blossom grows on another. Stalks grow to the same height of 1-3 feet. Leaves are trifoliate with three leaves which grow together at the top of one lone stem which forms from a corm. Each leaflet is 8-15 cm long and 3-7 cm broad. Blossoms are green and there are brown stripes on the inside of the pulpit. Inflorescences are irregularly shaped and grows to the length of 8 cm. It is greenish-yellow or fully green with purple or brownish stripes. Flowers are unisexual or sequential hermaphrodites. It is pollinated by fungus gnats which is attracted by the smell and is trapped by the flower. They could escape from the male inflorescences. Leaves are glossy and berries follow flowers in late summer. Fruits are shiny green and smooth berries about 1 cm wide which are clustered on the thickened spadix. Fruits ripen in late summer and fall turning a bright red color before the plants go dormant. The berries have 1 to 5 seeds which are white to light tan in color, rounded and often with flattened edges and short sharp point at the top and rounded bottom surface. It is known as Indian turnip because Native Americans cook and consume its bulbous roots which are regarded as a delicacy.
Facts of Jack in the pulpit
| Name | Jack in the pulpit |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Scientific Name |
| Native | Eastern North America, occurring in moist woodlands and thickets from Nova Scotia west to Minnesota, and south to southern Florida and Texas. |
| Common/English Name | Dragonroot, Jack In The Pulpit, Indian Turnip, Bog onion, American wake robin, Brown dragon, Wild turnip, Indian turnip, Indian onion, Marsh turnip, Swamp turnip, Meadow turnip, Pepper turnip, Wild pepper, Bog onion, Arum, American arum, Wake robin, Dragon root, Aronknolle |
| Name in Other Languages | English: Indian-turnip, Jack in the pulpit, Jack-in-the-pulpit, Indian Jack-in-the-pulpit, Indian turnip; German: Dreiblättriger Feuerkolben; French: Petit prêcheur, Arisème petit-prêcheur, Ariséma rouge-foncé, Gouet; |
| Plant Growth Habit | Herbaceous perennial plant |
| Plant Size | 30–65 centimetres (12–26 in) in height |
| Fruit shape & size | 1 cm wide berries |
| Fruit color | Shiny green |
| Seed | White to light tan |
| Fruit Season | Late summer and fall |
Jack in the pulpit Scientific Classification
Scientific Name: Arisaema triphyllum
| Rank | Scientific Name & (Common Name) |
|---|---|
| Kingdom | Plantae (Plants) |
| Subkingdom | Viridiplantae (Green plants) |
| Infrakingdom | Streptophyta (Land plants) |
| Superdivision | Embryophyta |
| Division | Tracheophyta (Vascular plants, tracheophytes) |
| Class | Magnoliopsida |
| Order | Alismatales |
| Family | Araceae (Arums) |
| Genus | Arisaema Mart. (Jack in the pulpit) |
| Species | Arisaema triphyllum (L.) Schott (Jack in the pulpit, Jack-in-the-pulpit) |
| Synonyms |
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Flower
Flowers on the club like spadix within hood are grouped atthe base of spadix. The spath or hood is 4-7 inches long which is striped with pinkish purple, brown and green. Fruit forms in clusters on stalk separate from the plant berries which are small and red that is edible.
Culinary uses
- Roots are boiled, sliced and dried for months and consumed like potato chips, crumbled into cereals or ground into flour for making biscuits, cakes and breads.
- Tubers are dried and cooked before consumption.
- Pound it into powder.
Medicinal uses
- The plant is used by Cherokees to treat headache, skin diseases, snake bites, joint aches, open sores and muscle pain.
- Use it for treating tetterworm, ringworm, boils and open sores.
- Tea prepared from Jack in the pulpit is used as stimulant, diaphoretic, expectorant and halt colds and coughs.
- Chippewa use it to provide relief from sore eyes.
- Apply the root as a poultice on headaches, rheumatism, scrofulous sores, ringworm and abscesses.
- Root decoction is used as a wash for sore eyes.
- Native American Indians use the root as contraceptive. 1 teaspoonful of dried powdered root in cold water helps to prevent conception for a week and 2 teaspoonfuls in hot water helps to induce permanent sterility.
Precautions
- It causes the symptoms such as burning in mouth and throat, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, slurred speech, teary eyes, blistering and swelling in the mouth.
- Too much internal usage causes throat to swell leading to choking and suffocation.
- It should not be consumed raw.
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