COLUMBUS – People might say 2020 is the perfect year for the “Corpse Flower” to make an appearance.
The endangered and famously fascinating plant species — the titan arum — is about to bloom at Franklin Park Conservatory for the first time in the conservatory’s history.
“Some people wait a lifetime to see this,” conservatory president and CEO Bruce Harkey said.
The flower is expected to fully open in a few days to a week, and only for a few days, when it will emit a strong odor resembling rotting flesh, which attracts its pollinators of flies and beetles, and gives the plant its nickname.
In its vegetative, or non-flowering, state, Amorphophallus titanum can reach up to 20 feet in height. The plant on display at the conservatory is currently about three feet tall and growing noticeably taller each day. After the bloom was initially noticed by staff, its size doubled overnight.
The titan arum is listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. It is native only to the Sumatran rainforests in Indonesia, where its population is currently decreasing.