Leaves, fruits and rhizomes contain compounds that make them poisonous. Notably, the plants are rich in oxalates. The ingestion of the plant may be fatal, as it affects the kidneys, digestive tract, and brain.[10]
It is cultivated as an ornamental plant for traditional and woodlandshade gardens.[2]Subspeciesitalicum (the one normally grown in horticulture) has distinctive pale veins on the leaves, whilst subspecies neglectum (known as late cuckoo pint[11]) has faint pale veins, and the leaves may have dark spots.[12] Nonetheless, intermediates between these two subspecies also occur, and their distinctiveness has been questioned.[13][14] Some gardeners use this arum to underplant with Hosta, as they produce foliage sequentially: when the Hosta withers away, the arum replaces it in early winter, maintaining ground-cover.[15] Numerous cultivars have been developed for garden use, of which A. italicum subsp. italicum 'Marmoratum' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[16]
Arum italicum can be invasive in some areas, particularly in the Pacific Northwest of the United States.[15][17][18] It is very difficult to control once established. Herbicides kill the foliage of the plant, but may not affect the tuber. Manual control may spread the plants through the dissemination of soil contaminated with bulb and root fragments.[19]
Within the genus, A. italicum belongs to subgenus Arum, section Arum.[20]
Arum italicum may hybridize with Arum maculatum.[21] The status of two subspecies currently included in Arum italicum, subsp. albispathum (Crimea to the Caucasus) and subsp. canariense (Macaronesia), is uncertain and they may represent independent species.[13]
A. italicum generally has a chromosome count of 2n = 84, except that a few subspecies (such as subsp. albispathum) have 2n = 56.[20]
^P.A. Stroh; T. A. Humphrey; R.J. Burkmar; O.L. Pescott; D.B. Roy; K.J. Walker (eds.). "Arum italicum Mill". BSBI Online Plant Atlas 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
^Govaerts, R. & Frodin, D.G. (2002). World Checklist and Bibliography of Araceae (and Acoraceae): 1-560. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
^Castroviejo, S. & al. (eds.) (2008). Flora Iberica 18: 1-420. Real Jardín Botánico, CSIC, Madrid.
^Dobignard, D. & Chatelain, C. (2010). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 1: 1-455. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève.
^Meeuse, B.J.D. 1975. Films of liquid crystals as an aid in pollination studies. In Pollination and Dispersal, ed N.B.M. Brantjes, H.F. Linskens, pp 19-20. Nijmegen. The Netherlands: Dep. Botany, Univ. Nijmegen.
