For those of you who don't live in skunk cabbage country and are wondering what all the fuss is about (and I have to admit that I'm doing some of that wondering myself), here is a link to some images of skunk cabbage spathes photographed on March 12, 2007. At that time they were a bit past their prime and some already had soft spots. In this area, it isn't unknown to see the spathes emerge in January, so it's possible that the ones in the images are as much as two months old. The colors are strongly reminiscent of those of Sauromatum guttatum/Typhonium venosum. As you can see, some are more red than others, some more yellow, some dark and dull. Also included is an image of a germinated seed. This species seeds freely. If you want to collect seeds easily, visit the plants in late November and look for the tattered remains of the spathe, the seed cluster itself (golf ball sized or even larger) or the seeds themselves lying on the ground. The seeds are best planted immediately; most sources report that they do not store well wet or dry. Here's the link to the images: http://jimmckenney.com/symplocarpus_foetidus.htm/ Jim McKenney jimmckenney@jimmckenney.com Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, USDA zone 7, where if I'm not mistaken the Pacific Rim skunk cabbages, the Lysichiton, are putting up inflorescences this year - just in time for the dip into the mid to upper 20s F for the next few nights. My Virtual Maryland Garden http://www.jimmckenney.com/ Webmaster Potomac Valley Chapter, NARGS Editor PVC Bulletin http://www.pvcnargs.org/ Webmaster Potomac Lily Society http://www.potomaclilysociety.org/