Quick Characteristics:
| Height: | 60-100 cm (2-3.3 ft) |
| Flower Colors: | white |
| Flower Season: | mid spring to early summer |
| Life form: | tuber |
Zantedeschia aethiopica (L.) Spreng. is found in usually seasonally damp places in a wide range of the winter rainfall area. Known as Arum lilies or Calla lilies in different parts of the world, they are a popular cut flower which can be fragrant. In parts of Australia and New Zealand, this is a prohibited plant and considered a serious weed. This species has also naturalized along the Northern California coast and is found in many places, including abandoned homesteads, blooming in spring. Photos by Mary Sue Ittner show some of the naturalized plants including a clump at Salt Point State Park.
Habitat pictures taken by Mary Sue Ittner and Bob Rutemoeller near Brackenfell, in the Cederberg, and near Tulbagh 2006.
'Child's Perfection' (syn. 'Childsiana') is a dwarf selection of Zantedeschia aethiopica that grows to about 18 inches (0.5 m) tall in moist soil and partial shade. The arachnids on the flowers in the second photo are Opiliones, commonly called harvestmen or daddy-long-legs. Photos taken May 2007 by Jay Yourch.
'Green Goddess' is a variety with green tipped leaves. Photo from Janos Agoston.
'Rod's Red' is a selection from Rod Saunders in South Africa. Photo by Mary Sue Ittner.
'White Giant' is a huge selection of Zantedeschia aethiopica with spotted foliage up to about 48 inches (1.2 m) tall and flower spikes up to 72 inches (1.8 m) tall. Photos taken June 2009 by Jay Yourch.
Plants exhibit guttation. Guttation (from the latin gutta - speck, spot or drop) is the production of water droplets from plant leaves. First photo by Philip Turner shows a pot plant with droplets of water on its leaves; so much water was shed this way that he called it a "puddle plant" (it is probably 'Green Goddess'). Third photo by David Pilling of Zantedeschia aethiopica with water droplets on the ends of the leaves after four hours standing in a saucer of water.
The time lapse video by David Pilling shows a leaf tip of Zantedeschia aethiopica for about six hours (one frame every 50 seconds) after the plant was put in a pot of water.
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Photographs by David Pilling. The first two show the roots; it is easy to remove a section and grow a new plant. The last photo shows developing flowers.
