Corpse Flower Near Bloom
- Foster Botanical Garden in Honolulu reports a corpse flower is expected to bloom soon. - These Titan arum blooms can take years between flowering events for a single plant. - Local coverage notes botanical staff are preparing viewing protocols because blooms are rare and attract crowds (hawaiinewsnow.com).
Honolulu’s Foster Botanical Garden says a corpse flower is close to blooming, setting up a brief public viewing for one of the world’s rarest and smelliest plant events. (hawaiinewsnow.com) The plant is a titan arum, the giant Sumatran species formally known as *Amorphophallus titanum*, and its bloom can last only about 24 to 36 hours once it fully opens. Foster staff told Hawaii News Now they are preparing crowd protocols inside the conservatory because the opening window is short and unpredictable. (hawaiinewsnow.com; chicagobotanic.org) A titan arum does not produce a typical single flower. What visitors see is a tall central spike, called a spadix, wrapped by a pleated structure called a spathe, and the plant heats up and releases an odor that imitates rotting meat to draw in carrion insects. (nybg.org; britannica.com) That odor is the reason crowds show up fast. Botanic gardens from Washington to Massachusetts have recently drawn long lines for titan arum blooms, and Foster has handled the same kind of attention during past openings in Honolulu. (apnews.com; fox5dc.com; honolulu.gov) The timing matters because titan arums spend most of their lives not blooming at all. Chicago Botanic Garden says a plant often needs 10 years or more before its first bloom, while New York Botanical Garden says each plant typically needs at least seven years to store enough energy for that first opening. (chicagobotanic.org; nybg.org) Between blooms, the plant usually sends up a single giant leaf to recharge its underground corm, a swollen storage organ that acts like a battery. Only when enough energy is stored does the plant switch from leaf mode to bloom mode. (chicagobotanic.org; britannica.com) Foster Botanical Garden is a fitting stage for the spectacle. The city says the 14-acre garden is the oldest of Honolulu’s five botanical gardens and keeps a collection of tropical plants that includes the corpse flower. (honolulu.gov; honolulu.gov) If the plant opens in the next few days, visitors will have a narrow chance to catch the smell before the bloom collapses and the garden returns to waiting for the next rare cycle. (hawaiinewsnow.com; chicagobotanic.org)
