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Smell you later: Vancouver "corpse flower" will open up very soon

Are you ready for the stench? Uncle Fester may unfurl and open sooner than we thought, possibly tonight
corpse
The titan arum’s leaves can reach 15 feet in length.

Vancouver is patiently waiting for the “corpse flower” a.k.a Uncle Fester to bloom... and it may happen sooner than we thought, possibly tonight.

On Friday Bloedel Conservatory posted to Facebook that "a hole has formed in the spathe (modified leaf) this afternoon which may indicate that it’s getting ready to unfurl and open up very soon!"

"If it blooms tonight we will stay open late, until 11pm. We will also open at 7am on Saturday and Sunday so you can get a sneak peek of the reek! The bloom can last up to 48 hours. Stay tuned!" the post stated.

The hype to take a whiff of the horrid stench produced by the Titan arum – the world’s largest flower – began Tuesday, when the Vancouver Park Board announced the plant was about to bloom at the conservatory.

Why is everyone so excited? Well, it’s not your average flower. It rarely ever blooms... but when it does it lets off a stench described as smelling like discarded diapers, hot garbage or even rotting flesh.

It emits that smell to attract other members of nature’s misfit crew such as carrion beetles and insects that feed on rotting flesh.

#BreakingNews It appears that a small hole has formed in the spathe this afternoon, which may indicate that Uncle Fester is getting ready to open! If it blooms tonight, we will stay open until 11pm. Regardless, we will open at 7am on Sat & Sun to give you a sneek peek at the reek pic.twitter.com/xWjeBfbKUT

Bruce McDonald, the Superintendent for Bloedel Conservatory and Sunset Nursery, said people were “morbidly curious about what it is going to smell like.”

“The response has been great and we are excited to be the first to show it in BC,” he told the Courier.

“People are amazed at its size and its unusual beauty.
“I am seeing the same people here every day to check on its progress.

“All asking the same question – ‘When do you think it's going to flower?’

“I wish I could give them a definitive answer... we will just have to wait and see.”

Online prognosticators — not to be confused with botanists or experts — are suggesting Sunday will be the big day.

In the meantime, we had a chat to McDonald, to find out a little more about the huge stinky plant.

Here are six facts you might not know about the “corpse flower.”

1. What happens when the flower blooms?

“When it blooms, it will unfurl its large flesh-coloured petal and start to emit rancid fumes to attract pollinator insects like carrion beetles and flesh flies that feed on dead animals,” a news release from the park board states.

“The public doesn’t need to worry about encountering such insects at Bloedel Conservatory.” 

2. Is there an explanation as to why it is blooming now?

“Hard to say,” McDonald says. “The species is unpredictable. Could be the perfect storm of growing conditions? Could be that this specimen is an early bloomer.”

3. What will happen after the flower blooms?

“The flower will not be pollinated (we think) so it will not set seed,” McDonald says.

“The inflorescence (or flower head) will begin to senesce and all growth, roots and flower,  will die back to the corm (a swollen, underground plant stem that stores nutrients).

“The corm is still viable and will go dormant for up to four to five months.

“It will be re-potted and tended to until it begins its next growth phase.

“The corms have a mind of their own.

“It will most likely form a vegetative bud next and sprout a big leaf.

“This cycle will continue until the corm has enough reserves to produce another flower.

“ The soonest in two to three years but more likely five to 10.”

4. How big can the corpse flower grow?

“The corm can weigh over 200lbs and the flower can get to be 12' tall," McDonald says.

“Uncle Fester only weighed 27lbs this spring so the fact it is flowering this year was a surprise.

“And remarkable that he got to 6' tall.”
 

5. What is the flowers lifespan?

“Titan Arums can live for up to 40 years and can flower multiple times over that span,” McDonald says.

“They usually flower two to three times over their lifespan.

“That is why this flower is so rarely displayed.”

Uncle Fester is only six-years-old.

6) Are there any other “corpse flowers” in Canada?

Vancouver isn’t the only place in Canada lucky enough to have a “corpse flower.”

“There’s one at the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton,” McDonald says.

 

Once Fester decides to pop, the conservatory will extends its hours (7 a.m. to 11 p.m.) for the two days following the birth so Vancouverites can revel in the splendour of smelling grim death.

Keep up to date on Fester’s comings and goings at vancouver.ca/corpseflower.