For a second year, there will be a rare corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanum) on display at the New York Botanical Garden.
The notoriously stinky flower gets its name from the rotting odor it gives off when it blooms, but that doesn’t stop people from coming to witness the rare event. A “corpse flower” can grow to be well over 10-feet-tall and can take anywhere from seven years to several decades to finally bloom—making this a pretty big deal. The new flower is part of the Roberto Burle Marx exhibit (Brazilian Modern: The Living Art of Robert Burle Marx) taking place from June 8 through September 29, which is also the largest botanical exhibit ever.
When a corpse flower blossoms it wreaks, but it’s quite the spectacle, and the stench itself doesn’t linger too long. The blooming process is very brief (only lasting about 24-to 36 hours) but the colors and sheer size of the flower are truly spectacular to witness! When open, the flower looks like one massive petal and has a deep burgundy-red coloring. Here’s a look at a time lapse from last year’s beautiful bloom.
Since the blooming cycle is unpredictable, the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx has once again created a live stream of the plant in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, so the green thumbs out there can keep an eye on the giant flower 24-7.
The Botanical Garden believes it’ll bloom within the coming weeks, so be sure to make it out there soon to try and catch the rare moment, or follow along on the live stream here:
And now, we wait…
featured image source: New York Botanical Garden, 2018
Also published on Medium.