Foul Flower

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It is considered one of the biggest events in the botanical gardening community. A flower famous for its foul odour is in full bloom in Niagara Falls. The corpse flower as it’s more commonly known is the world’s tallest flower and for some visitors this is a once in a lifetime experience.

It stands over a metre and a half tall. The Titan Arum is a massive bell-shaped flower and up until 1989 there were fewer than 30 recorded flowerings in botanical gardens worldwide. This particular flower was donated to the Niagara Parks Commission 4 years ago, since then it has bloomed 3 times. The bloom is expected to last only a day. After flowering the corpse flower lies dormant for about a year, then a single leaf emerges in place of the blossom, which is the size of a small tree.

While it is considered the world’s tallest species of flower, this one comes up short. In 2012 the same flower bloomed a whopping 2 and a half metres, a whole metre taller than this year. Officials believe a cold start to spring may have stunted it’s growth.

It is commonly referred to as the corpse flower because it emits a stench similar to rotting meat. It originates from the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. The smell attracts pollinators that normally feed on rotting flesh.

The Floral Show house will stay open until 8 o’clock for visitors to get a peak at the flower but, officials expect a second bud to bloom in three weeks.