Skunk Cabbage: the lovable oddball of Fenner’s swamps and marshes

Today's post is written by Lynette Score, one of our passionate naturalists here at the nature center. She writes about skunk cabbage, a telltale sign of spring in the marsh.

Check out our new woodchip trail- the one that branches off to the left soon after passing the vermicompost bins on the east side of the building. If you keep your eyes open as you enter the swamp, you might notice a purple plant with green spots growing in the marshy soil. No, you are not seeing things- this is skunk cabbage! 

skunk cabbage at Fenner Nature Center

Skunk cabbage is among the first plants to appear above ground after the winter (not that we really had a winter this year, but if we did…). While all the other plants are still dormant as seeds or bulbs or rhizomes in the frozen ground, skunk cabbage is already out and about. The first part of the plant to emerge, which is what you will see if you head out there now, is called the spathe. This is the purple, green-spotted thing I told you about. Skunk cabbage spathes emerge as early as February. If there had been any snow in the swamp this winter, you would have seen a snow-free circle around each spathe. This is because skunk cabbage spathes emit heat. No joke!

As the skunk cabbage matures further, a clump of small yellow flowers called the spadix forms inside the spathe. When the actual leaves unfurl in late spring, they are huge- up to a couple of feet long! If you crush a piece of a skunk cabbage leaf in your hand and smell it, you’ll understand how the plant gets its name. It definitely smells like a skunk. When the plant is fully mature, it forms an underground fruit that looks like a brain! This fruit has been rumored to have many medicinal uses including the treatment of convulsions, cough, and skin ailments. The Iroquois used the seeds from the fruit in fertility rituals. Talk about a cure-all!

Some people might try to tell you that skunk cabbage leaves are edible. Don’t believe them. Raw skunk cabbage leaves are toxic to mammals, which we are. Skunk cabbage leaves also contain calcium oxalate crystals, which cause a painful burning sensation in your mouth if you eat them. The theory behind eating skunk cabbage, as with a lot of “edible” plants, is that if you boil it enough it will become more palatable and safe to eat. This is also probably true of your belt, but that doesn’t mean that you should eat it. Furthermore, it is very difficult to remove all the calcium oxalate crystals, even with boiling. Getting to eat something that tastes not-painful at best isn’t worth the risk of getting sick or hurting your mouth.

Skunk cabbage is, however, an important resource for many species. Many small invertebrates eat the leaves, and the size of the leaves also makes them a great shelter source for small animals of all sorts. Since they aren’t affected by the calcium oxalate crystals and don’t seem to mind the smell, we’ll let them enjoy skunk cabbage as food and shelter. As for us, I would say there’s enough fun to be had by simply wondering at this oddball of a plant. 

Sources
www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/skunk_cabbage.htm
www.wildmanstevebrill.com