Cobra Plant

Peter Valder recently visited some gardens in Mount Wilson, NSW and found an unusual and quirky plant known as the Cobra Plant. So if you’re into weird and bizarre plants in the garden, the Cobra Plant is an easy one to grow.

Plant details

Common name: Cobra Plant or Friar’s Cowl
Botanic name:Arisarum vulgare
Climate: Mediterranean climate zones of Australia.
Description: Tubular shaped flowers that look like cobra heads with silver-white striped dark purple brown and are 20-25cm (8-10″) tall. The foliage is thick spreading and grows in clumps. Flowers throughout autumn and winter and into early spring and then dies down in summer.
Best look: Striking when grown as clumps in an autumn and winter garden around deciduous shrubs or trees or in a rock garden.

Care:

grow in rich fertile soil
transplant and propagate when dormant in summer
will tolerate mild frosts
multiplies readily in the garden

Availability

Tubers of Cobra Plants are available for $1 each from Sue and Garry Reid, RMB 6270 via Wodonga, VIC, 3691, phone: (02) 6027 1514.

Further information

Our segment was filmed at Merry Garth, Davies Lane, Mount Wilson, NSW, 2786. The garden is open to the public daily from 9am to 6pm from September to November and April to May 1998. For more information phone: (02) 4756 2121.