"Uncle Fester" a.k.a. Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus titanum) Explore
Blooms only once every 10 years, now at Bloedel Conservatory in Vancouver. It must be happy there because it bloomed in only 7 years! We didn't get to see it open fully because sun was shining on it from the glass dome above (it needs shade); there's a shot of one of the signs outside the Conservatory in comments below - shows what it looks like when open.
It grows only in Sumatra and Java jungles. As it gradually opens, it releases powerful odors to attract pollinators - insects which feed on dead animals or lay their eggs in rotting meat. The potency of the odor gradually increases from late evening until the middle of the night, when carrion beetles and flesh flies are active as pollinators, then tapers off towards morning
Some corpse flowers only bloom once every few decades. The plant's energy is stored in the corm – a swollen stem base typically weighing around 100 lbs. (45 kilograms). The corpse plant has the world's largest known corm, sometimes weighing up to 220 lbs. (100kg). During the non-flowering years, a single leaf, the size of a small tree, shoots up from the corm. This leaf branches out into three sections with each of these sprouting more leaflets. Each year, this shooting leaf dies and a new one grows in its place. After many years, the plant finally gathers enough energy to bloom, and once it does, it can only hold the bloom for 24 to 36 hours before it collapses.
The plant itself grows to around 10 to 15 feet (3 to 4.6 meters) and typically can grow to a massive 8 feet (2.4 m) tall and the leaves can be as big as 13 feet (4 m) wide.
"Uncle Fester" a.k.a. Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus titanum) Explore
Blooms only once every 10 years, now at Bloedel Conservatory in Vancouver. It must be happy there because it bloomed in only 7 years! We didn't get to see it open fully because sun was shining on it from the glass dome above (it needs shade); there's a shot of one of the signs outside the Conservatory in comments below - shows what it looks like when open.
It grows only in Sumatra and Java jungles. As it gradually opens, it releases powerful odors to attract pollinators - insects which feed on dead animals or lay their eggs in rotting meat. The potency of the odor gradually increases from late evening until the middle of the night, when carrion beetles and flesh flies are active as pollinators, then tapers off towards morning
Some corpse flowers only bloom once every few decades. The plant's energy is stored in the corm – a swollen stem base typically weighing around 100 lbs. (45 kilograms). The corpse plant has the world's largest known corm, sometimes weighing up to 220 lbs. (100kg). During the non-flowering years, a single leaf, the size of a small tree, shoots up from the corm. This leaf branches out into three sections with each of these sprouting more leaflets. Each year, this shooting leaf dies and a new one grows in its place. After many years, the plant finally gathers enough energy to bloom, and once it does, it can only hold the bloom for 24 to 36 hours before it collapses.
The plant itself grows to around 10 to 15 feet (3 to 4.6 meters) and typically can grow to a massive 8 feet (2.4 m) tall and the leaves can be as big as 13 feet (4 m) wide.