Posted June 20th:
Believed to be the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world, the Amorphophallus Titanum, or “corpse flower” is set to be in full bloom later this evening (June 20th) or tomorrow (June 21st) at the Heier Teaching and Research Greenhouse, at Binghamton University.
The flower, which emits a strong odor when in bloom is already standing tall at 73 inches! Don’t miss your chance to see this amazing flower in full effect! Just in case you can’t see the flower in person, check out a time lapse video of a previous bloom, from the Binghamton University YouTube channel, after the jump.
UPDATE:
Metis bloomed on June 21. A species known for smelling like a rotting corpse, the flower used so much energy to emit the odor and support its massive 6-foot body that it only lasted for a couple of days. Now that the bloom is complete, the pollen has been collected and stored away for another Titan. For more coverage, head over to Binghamton University’s Metis blog.
Metis received a lot of attention this year. Binghamton University opened the greenhouse to visitors for extended hours so that the number of visitors to the rare flower may be maximized in its short bloom. On the SUNY Blog, the story itself was well-received; it was shared many times on Facebook and featured a comment from user Jo A Duhaime that, perhaps, embodies any non-scientist’s feelings on the flower:
“Guess I won’t be wearing one for a prom corsage!!”
So, while we wait patiently until Metis may bloom again, we in the SUNY community are comforted with its strong showing this year! Thanks, science!
