Three-hour queues full of people waiting to smell the odor of rotting flesh seems an unusual tourist attraction, but such is the lure of a rare flower bloom in an Australian greenhouse.
A “corpse flower” inside the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney has drawn more than 20,000 curious viewers to a special display for its much-anticipated opening.
These flowers are rare bloomers. In the case of this particular specimen, it is the first time it has opened since 2010.
Why is it called a ‘corpse flower’?
The corpse flower, native to the Indonesian island of Sumatra, gets its name from the literal translation of the Indonesian phrase Bunga bangkai.
Its species name, Amorphophallus titanum, meanwhile, means “titanic misshaped penis” in Ancient Greek.
These names are accurate descriptions. Some corpse flowers have been known to grow three meters tall before revealing a phallic spadix (or spike), while the odor, released by the spadix to attract insects, is often likened to decaying meat.
However, corpse flowers are many and varied, and the term is used loosely to describe blossoms that emit the scent of death to attract carrion insects. These insects lay their eggs on the spadix.
The corpse flower housed in the Sydney Palm House has been christened “Putricia” — a combination of the woman’s name Patricia, and the aptly descriptive word putrid.
How often do corpse flowers bloom?
While Putricia bloomed for the first time in 15 years, corpse flower blooms are often inconsistent. Many will bloom once a decade, though sometimes even more frequently.
The lifecycle depends on the time it takes for the “corm” of the flower to gather enough energy to bloom. This heavy bulb-like structure usually cycles through “leaf” stages, sending up a stem from the corm. This enables the plant to photosynthesize and build the corm’s energy reserves before dying off.
When enough energy has been stored through these leaf cycles, the flowering stage begins.
The bloom lasts for a day, with the spathe (the purple, petal-like structure surrounding the spadix) taking hours to fully unfurl.
Insects attracted to the odor are ones that lay their eggs in decaying meat but have the benefit of moving pollen between male and female flowers to trigger the flower’s reproductive cycle.
Corpse flowers have a tiny chance to reproduce
In the wild, pollination requires careful timing.
Corpse flowers have both male and female flowers. Female flowers open first to prevent a plant from pollenating itself. Nearby flowers are required to bloom at similar times in order for cross pollination to be possible.
“The fact that they open very rarely … is obviously something that puts them at a little bit of a disadvantage in the wild,” said Sophie Daniel at the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney.
“When they open, they have to hope that another flower is open nearby, because they can’t self-pollinate.” Daniel said.
Botanists will attempt to hand-pollinate Putricia and leave nothing to chance.
What does a corpse flower smell like?
A 2023 study performed by researchers at Dartmouth College, US, quantified the molecules detected in the perfume emitted by the corpse flower. Among the chemicals emitted during female flowering were:
- Dimethyl disulfide, which smells like garlic
- Dimethyl trisulfide, which can smell like a mix of rotting meat and cabbage
- 3-Methylbutanal, which can smell like ripening soft cheese
- Dimethyl sulfide and Methanethiol, which smell like boiled or rotting cabbage
- Methyl thioacetate, which has a sulfurous odor
- Isovaleric acid, similar to smelly feet
How many corpse flowers are left in the wild?
There’s been a decline in corpse flower numbers in the wild due to land clearing and poaching.
It’s estimated there are around 300 left in the wild and potentially 1,000 in cultivated settings.
A corpse flower near you?
You don’t have to travel to Sumatra’s mountainous landscapes to witness a corpse flower bloom.
Many botanical gardens around the world house them. Greenhouses are especially good for tropical species such as these, due to their humid temperatures that replicate the conditions of their native habitat.
Botanic gardens in the US, Canada, Brazil, Europe, China, India and parts of Africa have all promoted their own viewing spectacles in recent years.
Edited by: Zulfikar Abbany
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