Alocasia odora (Night-scented Lily)

Native from India through southern China and Southeast Asia to southern Japan, this evergreen herbaceous plant can grow about eight feet tall. It occurs in rain forests, bamboo thickets, riverbanks, and swamps. Fragrant inflorescences consist of a flower-bearing spadix enclosed by a spathe. Short stolons end in small tuber-like structures that can develop into new plants. Ripe berries become red as their enclosing spathe opens. Its sap contains needle-shaped calcium oxalate crystals that can irritate the skin, mouth, and throat. Photographed in Colombia.