Rare, huge, smelly flower about to bloom at UNCC Botanical Gardens

Titan Arum, with Lynn Roberson, for scale

Update: The flower bloomed Friday afternoon. Titan Arums, also known as corpse flowers, are rare plants native only to the jungles of Sumatra. They are notable because of their size–they can grow to be ten feet tall–and because when they bloom, which they only do every few years, a couple times in their lifetime, they emit an extremely strong smell. It’s been compared with rotting meat. You know what that means, right? It’s a major event when one of these plants bloom and one you should see and smell. UNCC Botanical Gardens is home to one Titan Arum, named Odoardo, Odie for short, and it’s about to bloom. The prediction is sometime between July 16 and 19, 2015. Most likely Thursday night, July 16, or Friday morning, July 17. When it blooms it will emit the distinctive odor for only 12 hours. The bloom will stay open, without odor, for another two days.

There’s a live video stream of Odie! Click here.

The McMillanGreenhouse will be open for visitors on day 1 and 2 of the bloom from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

To be alerted the moment Odie blooms, follow the UNCC Botanical Gardens on Facebook. Learn more about McMillan Greenhouse, including directions and parking information.