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The world's tallest flower is about to bloom
in Niagara Falls, Ont. Image courtesy of The Niagara Parks Commission.
It’s
stinky and it’s huge—and it’s about to bloom.
The
world’s tallest flower is set to bloom this week.
Its scientific name is The Amorphophallus titanium (Titan
Arumfor short).
The
extremely rare flower is at the Niagara Parks’ Floral Showhouse, near the
Canadian Horseshoe Falls in Ontario. When it blooms, it will be the 22nd of its
kind to bloom in a botanical garden.
Titan Arum is also known as the corpse flower.
That’s because of the stinky odour it gives off. It smells like rotting meat.
Its
horrible smell helps the flower attract insects that it needs for pollination.
(Lots of insects are attracted to rotting meat.)
Titan
arum normally grows in the rainforests of Sumatra.
However,
this one—and another one that is also growing and will bloom after the first
one—was donated by a man who lives in New Hampshire, U.S.
He
donated two “corms,” the bulb-like structures that were planted and eventually
grew into the plant it has become today. Each corm weighed 150 kilograms.
Staff planting the corm on January 6, 2012.
Image courtesy of The Niagara Parks Commission.
The
plants have been growing about three inches a day. The people looking after the
plants, called botanists, know that when the plant’s growth slows down to about
one inch a day, it is getting ready to bloom. And that’s what has been
happening lately.
As of
April 29, the plant was measured at 88.5 inches.
They
expect to see the full flower today or tomorrow, although it’s hard to predict
with 100 per cent accuracy. The smelly bloom is expected to last only about
four days.
There
have been other Titan Arums that have bloomed in greenhouses, and they attract
more than just pollinating insects. The Titan also attracts plant lovers and
botanists, some of whom travel around the world when they hear of one that is
about to bloom.
Image of mature plant. Image courtesy of Louis
M. Ricciardiello and The Niagara Parks Commission
They
want to be there for the rare event that relatively few people ever get to
experience.
The
flower will be at its stinkiest in the first 12 hours after it blooms.
Edited by Nirrosa Muniandy
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