Xanthosoma sagittifolium (L.) Schott

 
  • Family : ARACEAE
    (Arum Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : OAL FAMILY
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Araceae
  • Basionym : Xanthosoma violaceum Schott
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Xanthosoma sagittifolium (L.) Schott
  • Common name : Arrowleaf Elephant's Ear
  • Vernacular name :
    • Palchembu, Seemachembu (Malayalam)
    • Govekesu (Kannada)
  • Habit : Herb
  • Comments / notes : Cultivated for edible tubers. Introduced (Shevroy hills); above 1400m, in perennially moist places, by wastelands and by habitations
  • Flower, Fruit : October-January
  • Distribution :
    • Karnataka : Udupi district, Dakshina Kannada district, Bengaluru Urban district, Bengaluru Rural district
    • Kerala : Kozhikode district, Palakkad district, Thrissur district, Kollam district
    • Tamil Nadu : Shevaroy Hills (Salem district)
  • Native : Tropical America
  • World Distribution : Introduced old World
  • Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
  • Literature :
    • Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (2). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI
    • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2003 – Flora of Udupi District
    • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2014- Flora of South Kanara.
    • Nayar, T. S., et al, 2006. Flowering plants of Kerala, A hand book
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Xanthosoma sagittifolium
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Flora Online. http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Xanthosoma sagittifolium. Downloaded on 29 January 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Field Image(s)

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

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