Arrow Arum

Peltandra virginica

Arrow arum is a hardy, perennial marsh plant with:

• Long, arrowhead-shaped green leaves with veins on the undersides. Arrow arum leaves, which grow from the top of stalks, can be up to 18 inches long and nearly 6 inches wide.
• Stalks that can grow up to 3 feet tall.
• A thick rootstock that is embedded in the mud.

Where does arrow arum grow?

Large colonies of arrow arum are commonly found in shallow or slow-moving freshwater bogs, swamps and marshes.

Other facts about arrow arum:

• Arrow arum gets its common name from its arrowhead-shaped leaves.
• Arrow arum seeds are a favorite food of rails, muskrats, wood ducks and black ducks.
• Some Native American tribes used dried, pulverized arrow arum roots as flour for making bread, and the plant's fruits were sometimes cooked and eaten like peas.
• Arrow arum is sometimes called "tuckahoe" or "duck corn."