Titan Arum - Amorphophallus titanum - is blooming

[Vijayasankar]

Dear all,

The plant with the largest inflorescence in the world, Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum), is currently in flowering in our medicinal plant garden at the University of Mississippi. The flower-bud is now 3-days old and has grown to over 3 ft tall; at maturity it may reach 7-10 ft high. It may gradually bloom during the next 2-3 days. In full bloom, it emanates a characteristic, strong, unpleasant (rotting meat!) odor in order to attract the pollinator flies. So, it is also known as 'Corpse Flower'.

This is a rare and threatened plant species, native to Indonesia. The plant takes more than 5 years to start flowering and it blooms infrequently (once in 3-5 years). It even more rarely blooms under cultivation. For more details visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amorphophallus_titanum

I will post more pictures when the inflorescence opens fully.

 

Regards 

Vijayasankar

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Vijayasankar Raman, Ph.D.
National Center for Natural Products Research
University of Mississippi

[Nidhan Singh]

Thank you very much Vijayasankar Ji for this very interesting post...looking forward for flowers to open..

[J.M. Garg]

Wonderful post, Vijayasankar ji.

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With regards,
J.M.Garg

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[Ritesh Kumar Choudhary]

Wonderful!! Thanks for sharing dear doctor!

Regards,

Ritesh. 

[Satish Phadke]

Thanks for sharing!

Dr Satish Phadke

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[D.S Rawat]

Whenever a Titan Lily blooms it makes a news.

And a smell of rotten flesh probably to attract pollinator insects.

You are lucky to see it in front of you.

And thanks for showing this majestic plant in bloom.

DSRawat Pantnagar

[Vijayasankar]

Thank you all for your comments and appreciations.
The flower (inflorescence) of Titan Arum looks very attractive, grand and majestic in full bloom! 

More pictures are at https://www.flickr.com/photos/vijayasankar_raman/13998667587/







​

 

Regards 

Vijayasankar

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Vijayasankar Raman, Ph.D.
National Center for Natural Products Research
University of Mississippi

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[Giby Kuriakose]

Wow, thanks Vijay for sharing this wonderful plant. I wonder why this plant need to produce such a big flower putting so much resources. Any idea about its pollinator?

Regards

Giby

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GIBY KURIAKOSE PhD
Assistant Professor
PG and Research Department of Botany
Sacred Heart College
Thevara
Kochi- 682 013
Kerala, India
Phone - +914844044436 (office) +919947109987 (Mobile)
visit my pictures @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/giby

[Vijayasankar]

Thanks Giby.

Titan Arum flowers are pollinated by carrion beetles and flies. This way the flowers tap an unusual source of pollinators. Like some other Amorphophallus species, A. titanum also produces heat and the typical (rotting meat) odor simulating freshly killed animal body in order to attract this special group of pollinators.

The plant lives in evergreen forest; it blooms once in 3-5 years and the flowers live just for a day. So it has to be successful in pollination and seed-setting. The flowers (infl.) are large and prominent; and the spadix acts like a torch, producing heat (higher than the surrounding air) so that the odor spreads up above the tree canopy and to greater distances.

Its really amazing!

Here is a nice video of the pollination: http://www.arkive.org/titan-arum/amorphophallus-titanum/video-09.html

 

Regards 

Vijayasankar

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Vijayasankar Raman, Ph.D.
National Center for Natural Products Research
University of Mississippi

[Nidhan Singh]

Amazingly beautiful video..thanks Vijayasankar Ji...

[Giby Kuriakose]

Thanks Vijay for  information and the video. 

Regards

Giby

On 17 May 2014 11:02, Nidhan Singh <nidhans...@gmail.com> wrote:

Amazingly beautiful video..thanks Vijayasankar Ji...

[Prashant Awale]

Thanks Vijayasankar ji for this interesting and informative post.

Regards

Prashant

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[Vijayasankar]

Dear all,

Our study on this plant is now published. Please check any of the following links to view/download the full article.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312515942_Studies_on_the_floral_anatomy_and_scent_chemistry_of_titan_arumAmorphophallus_titanum_Araceae
OR
http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/botany/abstract.htm?id=19841

Thanks,
Vijayasankar

On Saturday, May 24, 2014 at 3:22:09 AM UTC-5, Prashant wrote:

Thanks Vijayasankar ji for this interesting and informative post.

Regards

Prashant

On Sat, May 17, 2014 at 10:47 PM, Giby Kuriakose <giby.ku...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks Vijay for  information and the video. 

Regards

Giby

On 17 May 2014 11:02, Nidhan Singh <nidhans...@gmail.com> wrote:

Amazingly beautiful video..thanks Vijayasankar Ji...

--

GIBY KURIAKOSE PhD
Assistant Professor
PG and Research Department of Botany
Sacred Heart College
Thevara
Kochi- 682 013
Kerala, India
Phone - +914844044436 (office) +919947109987 (Mobile)
visit my pictures @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/giby

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[Nidhan Singh]

Thanks for sharing Vijayasankar Ji...a very good work on a rare plant!!

--
Regards,

Dr. Nidhan Singh

Assistant Professor
Department of Botany
I.B. (PG) College
Panipat-132103 Haryana
Ph.: 09416371227

[Gurcharan Singh]

Thanks Vijayasankar ji

I had photographed this plant from UCBG mostly in fruiting stage in 2008. It flowered again in last week of July 2016, but missed it although I was California, read it only later on. For last one year there were a number of messages on WhatsApp claiming that this plant flowers only once in 40 years. I was tired of convincing people that it is not so.

Dr. Gurcharan Singh

Retired  Associate Professor
SGTB Khalsa College, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007
Res: 932 Anand Kunj, Vikas Puri, New Delhi-110018.
Phone: 011-25518297  Mob: 9810359089

http://www.gurcharanfamily.com/ 
http://people.du.ac.in/~singhg45/

[Pankaj Kumar]

There was also a rumor that Shivling appeared in the pot. 😇

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[J.M. Garg]

Congrats,  Vijayasankar ji

Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix.

[Vijayasankar]

Thanks Nidhan ji!

[Vijayasankar]

Thanks Gurcharan ji! Yes, I have seen the beautiful pictures posted by you. Fruit setting is in fact rare in this species as the flowers are not self pollinated. Hence the pollination in garden-grown plants are usually done artificially with stored pollen.
Haha, false news spread faster...!
This species generally blooms during summer at least in the USA. Hope you will be able to see flowering this year. The flower is stunningly beautiful when bloom, and of course, uniquely stinky. But every botanist should experience this giant beauty. We also expect an another bloom this summer.

Vijayasankar

[Vijayasankar]

Thanks Garg ji and Pankaj!

[Dinesh Valke]

Hearty congratulations, Vijayasankar ji !!

Regards.

Dinesh

On Tue, Jan 24, 2017 at 11:23 AM, Vijayasankar <vijay.b...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks Garg ji and Pankaj!

On Monday, January 23, 2017 at 9:13:06 PM UTC-6, JM Garg wrote:

[Promila Chaturvedi]

Cogratulations, Dr. Vijayasankar.

Promila

[Vijayasankar]

Many thanks Promila ji and Dinesh ji!