Rare (and evil-smelling) corpse flower blooms at McMaster University
Digital Reporter
Tuesday, January 6, 2015, 1:21 PM - It's enormous, almost non-existent in Canada, and beautiful when in bloom. Also, its awful odor is legendary.
Say hello to the "corpse flower" currently in bloom at McMaster University's biology greenhouse, a rare event that only happens for a few days at a time.
The flower is around 1.7 m tall, about the average height of a fully-grown human being, and it's emerging from a corm base weighing in at 50 pounds.
And, yes, it stinks, and it's supposed to: That stench is meant to attract pollinators, and the days-long blooming period really takes it out of the plant.
Arthur Yeas checks the corm's measurements. Photo: JD Howell/McMaster University
"It uses up a lot of stored-up energy in the corm to make it flower and bloom," Arthur Yeas, a greenhouse technician at McMaster, told The Weather Network. "This can cause the flower to fade quickly. Also, if it is pollinated, the flower will fade because the plant has set out to do what it started to do: Get pollinated and set seed."
Yeas says the plant and others like it are rare in cultivation, and even rarer to bloom. McMaster got its specimen from New Hampshire, and Yeas says he knows of only three other locations in Canada where they are cultivated.
Part of it may lie with how hard it is to simulate the right growing conditions in Canada.
"They're not easy plants to grow, and require an experienced grower to maintain the plants in good condition," Yeas says. "Ideally, the temperature should not be less than 28oC during the day, and high humidity. this requires a large greenhouse and a controlled atmosphere. It can be expensive to maintain these conditions."
While a plant that emits a stench reminiscient of carrion is a nice novelty, going through the trouble of raising one is not an idle exercise.
"This magnificent plant can teach about the complexity and diversity of Earth's ecosystem," Yeas says. "In Sumatra, these plants, when prepared properly, can be used for food and medicine.
McMaster spokeswoman Michelle Donovan says the greenhouse is open late until 11 p.m. while the plant is in bloom, and the public is welcome to take a look. Just breathe through your mouth.
