Plant Talk: Exotic voodoo lily raises quite a stink

Q: Here is a photo of a very bizarre plant I saw on a job site last week. Have you ever seen anything like it? It is very phallic, but sort of pretty.

This plant "volunteered" in one of my beds. Here it is in its full bloom. The bloom is stinky, but very dramatic. I have no clue what it is. Can you help?

A: This curiously beautiful plant is called variously a dragon lily, snake lily or, my favorite, voodoo lily. Botanically it's an aroid named Dracunculus vulgaris. We're hard put to know whether that last word refers to its suggestive shape or its smell (it's also known as stink lily). Native to Greece and the Balkans, it's a hardy perennial despite its exotic looks, which include dramatic leaves and a thick, mottled stalk, in addition to the glossy dark purple spathe and near-black spadix. You don't want to plant voodoo lilies too close to the house, because when they first come into bloom their odor mimics rotting flesh to attract pollinator flies, wasps and beetles.

Q: For several years, I have had trouble getting one of my peonies to bloom. It seemed to bud OK, but then the buds kind of shriveled and never progressed to bloom. I did a little research and found that this was probably "peony botrytis." So, this spring, I used a fungicide with copper in it — it worked like a charm! I had many blooms on the plant, and almost all were very healthy.

But, the odd thing is that the copper seemed to act like some kind of super-fertilizer, in that the peony was almost twice as big as usual. This isn't a bad thing, although it does take up a little too much room in my garden. What are your thoughts?

A: My guess is that your peony grew so large because it benefited from all the rain and mild temperatures, as well as being botrytis-free this year. Many plants, including clematis, grew huge this spring due to the mild, damp weather. Also, your peony may just have finally been in the ground long enough to really kick in this year. Of course, this is mostly supposition — I believe it's just such plant mysteries that keep so many of us intrigued with gardening.

Q: I'm determined to grow a good crop of basil this year, but the little plants I started from seed either damped off or were eaten by slugs and snails. Is it too late to start over?

A: It's not too late. And in fact, if you planted before mid-June, you jumped the gun. I'm sure compost piles all over Seattle were enriched with dead baby basils in June, as those first 10 days of the month were basil-slaughtering. To thrive, this popular herb needs warm soil and nighttime temperatures that remain above 50 degrees.

Do yourself a favor and start over with bushy 4-inch plants from the nursery. All you really need to remember is that basil is a sun-lover, so plant it in the warmest, brightest spot you can find, in fertile, well-drained soil, and it'll take off. Keep it pinched back so your basil doesn't grow leggy, and keep the flowers pinched off so it keeps producing leaves, and you'll be enjoying pesto by next month.

Valerie Easton also writes about Plant Life in Sunday's Pacific Northwest Magazine. Write to her at P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111 or e-mail planttalk@seattletimes.com with your questions. Sorry, no personal replies.