In Summer 2018, the Conservatory of Flowers experienced two Corpse Flower blooms, Suma the Titan and Amor the Arum. Read more about the blooming events below.
On September 5, 2018, Amor the Arum bloomed at the Conservatory of Flowers.
Updates
September 5, 2018: Amor the Arum made their debut for potential pollinators last night, and we had a wonderful showing for peak stink! We love our guests! This inflorescence continues to stink today, so swing by to take in the smell of dead-rat-in-the-wall 🙂
The Corpse Flower is actually an arrangement of hundreds of flowers, arranged at the bottom of the tall yellow spadix, protected by that beautiful cabernet-colored spathe. About half the flowers are female and half are male. The female flowers open on the first night, ready for beetle pollinators to bring pollen from visits to other Corpse Flowers.
As we don’t have live beetles already dusted with Corpse Flower pollen, we appointed the next best thing: horticulturist Mario, a brush, and a vial of pollen. Where did we get this pollen? We worked with our compatriots down at The Huntington in Pasadena, who were kind enough to share fresh pollen from their recent Corpse Flower blooms.
Before applying the pollen, Mario checked the viability of the female flowers by looking for stigmas that were yellow and slightly sticky. The flowers proved to be receptive, at which point Mario picked up the pollen with a custom-made brush, gently reaching into the center of the bloom and applying it to the female flowers. Fingers crossed that this pollination event was successful! Stay tuned for future fruit developments.
September 3, 2018: It’s official! This morning’s measurements are in and Amor is now taller than Suma at bloom time. We are still seeing a continued darkening of the spathe as we are approaching that smelly moment! Here is the measurement and some more photos:
Height: 57.5 inches
September 1, 2018: Amor is reaching the same height Suma was! Here is the measurement for today:
Height: 56 inches
August 30, 2018: The votes are in and after all of the fantastic submissions we have chosen to name this bloom Amor the Arum! At this point the protective leaf-like bracts have fallen away and the ruffled spathe is starting to show its deep maroon tint. Here is the measurement for today:
Height: 54 inches
Change in height since yesterday: 2 inches
August 26, 2018: Our unnamed Corpse Flower continues to develop quickly. Here are our measurements for today:
Height: 49 inches
Change in height since yesterday: 2 inches
August 24, 2018: This Corpse Flower, Amorphophallus titanum, is currently unnamed and a sibling to Suma, the Corpse Flower that bloomed just one month ago. Our skilled horticulture staff have nurtured this plant into its first bloom at age 10 years. Suma’s bloom was an olfactory experience like no other- we are excited to offer our guests another opportunity to witness this bloom.
Today’s height measurement is 45 inches.
