Stages of a Corpse Flower Bloom

Bloom Description

• The bloom of the corpse flower is actually a compound flowering stalk called an inflorescent. The initial opening of the spathe (the maroon, flowerlike outer skirt) indicates that the actual blooms, which are located at the base of the flower stalk, are nearing maturity. When the spathe drops off, orange fruits are revealed.

Flowers are Rare

• The corpse flower begins as a gigantic leaf measuring 12 feet high and 10 feet wide. The solitary leaf emerges from an enormous corm that can reach 170 pounds. After about a year, the leaf dies back and the plant goes dormant for several months. A new leaf emerges when the plant breaks dormancy. Occasionally, instead of a leaf, a flower stalk will emerge from the corm. This cycle is erratic and does not seem to follow a pattern.

Peculiar Stench

• The corpse flower is so nicknamed because of the incredibly foul odor it emits as the spathe pulls away from the spandex, its specialized flower stalk. The odor is caused by two sulfur compounds, dimethyl disulfide and dimethyl trisulfide, and is reminiscent of rotten meat. The spandex heats up as the flower first opens in order to disburse its olfactory load. Temperatures inside the spandex have been measured by thermal imaging and often reach human body temperatures.

Flower Opening

• The final act of the corpse flower, before going dormant again, is to open fully. The specialized leaf structure, the spathe, peels back from the inflorescent stalk, the spandix. As the spathe begins to hang like a skirt around the spandix, the spathe turns a deep maroon color. The spathe falls off after about 48 hours to reveal maturing seeds, if the plant was successfully pollinated. The spandix begins to deteriorate and collapses within five days, leaving the inflorescents behind. Once the seeds have fully ripened, the plant returns to dormancy.

Natural Wonder

• Like any oddity of the plant kingdom, mystery surrounds the corpse flower. While its bloom may be short-lived, the real marvel is how infrequently these flowers bloom. In the United States, only about 20 blooms have ever been witnessed since the corpse flower first was cultivated by botanists in the 1930s. When the corpse flower isn't hanging out as a dormant corm, it sports only a single leaf. Once in a great while, at random intervals, a flower grows instead of a replacement leaf. The bloom's rarity and putrid fragrance are the real draw for most on-lookers.