November 21, 2024
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The World’s Smelliest Corpse Flower Blooms Once a Decade

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The Smelliest Corpse Flower Blooms Once a Decade

The corpse flower smells like… well, a dead body. Given its rotting odor, the plant, whose technical name is Amorphophallus titanum has also been dubbed the corpse bride, corpse plant, and the world’s smelliest flower.

The plant’s smell has also been likened to “Limburger cheese, garlic, rotting fish, and smelly feet.”
The titan arum is a flowering plant, native to Indonesia’s island of Sumatra. The plant’s full bloom only once every seven to ten years. This rare event only lasts 24 to 36 hours. Generally, the flower will open mid-afternoon and stay open all through the night and into the next morning.

The corpse flower is classified as endangered, with fewer than 1,000 individuals left in the wild. Flower enthusiasts travel from all over the world to witness this infrequent occurance. Visitors will return day after day to conservatories, greenhouses, and botanical gardens with a predicted corpse flower bloom so as not to miss the short window.

Why does it smell?

The  flower’s scent is a chemical combination of dimethyl trisulfide, isovaleric acid, dimethyl disulfide, benzyl alcohol, indole, and trimethylamine. The odor is meant to mimic decomposition in order to attract its native pollinators– carrion beetles and flesh flies– who are drawn to the smell of decaying meat.
The potency of the stench gradually increases from late evening until the middle of the night– when pollinators are most active. The smell tapers off in the morning.

Where can I see a corpse flower bloom?

Titan arum are native to Indonesia, but there are botanists around the world who cultivate the plants. Corpse flowers are in cultivation in Europe, North & South America, Australia, and Asia. Check out your local botanical gardens to see if a flower near you is blooming in 2022!

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