Zantedeschia aethiopica (L.) Spreng.
white arum lily, common arum lily · wit varkoor (Afr.)
The white arum lily: a rewarding, old-fashioned plant for wet ground and pond edges.
What’s in the name: Zantedeschia: honours Giovanni Zantedeschi, an Italian physician and botanist; aethiopica: "African" (an old use of the word).
“Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin”
— Matthew 6:28 (KJV), The King James Version of the Bible (Project Gutenberg)
Available from AVNPlants: see the availability list.
Family
Common names: White or common arum lily (English); wit varkoor (Afrikaans); intebe (Xhosa) ihlukwe (Zulu)
Conservation status
Least Concern, SANBI Red List of South African Plants
Natural distribution & habitat
Western Cape through the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal to Mpumalanga and Limpopo, from the coast up to about 2 250 m, in marshy places. Evergreen or deciduous depending on rainfall.
Size & form
Clump-forming perennial 0.6–1 m (taller in shade), forming large colonies.
Flowering
Main flush August to January.
Uses in landscaping
- Marginal plant for streams and ponds
- Wetlands and damp beds
Care notes
Easy by division, or sow cleaned, dried seed in spring.
Wildlife value
Lightly scented flowers attract bees and crawling insects that pollinate them; crab spiders hunt there.
Find out more
Facts checked against: SANBI PlantZAfrica species page 'Zantedeschia aethiopica'; SANBI Red List of South African Plants, Zantedeschia aethiopica (L.) Spreng. (assessment 2018/01/03).