phallus like flower
Krishna Kumar Mishra
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Amarphophallus= shapeless penis,
paeoniifolius= peony like foliage)
The biggest and one of the rarest flowers in the world is blooming in
Salempur village of Kheri district Uttar Pradesh India.
This flower is about 1.5 feet tall and will bloom for only 5-6 days
before shedding its leaves. The flower emits an odor most frequently
compared to that of rotting flesh. In India, which is home of the
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius, the plant is known as the Elephant Yam
or Khanta. One of the Earth's most unusual plants- the Elephant Yam-
is now in full flower in the Salempur village. The Flower of the
Elephant Yam is a large purple knob with a scent like rotting flesh to
attract its pollinators, carrion flies and beetles. Amorphophallus
paeoniifolius, the Elephant Yam, belongs to the Aroid family, Araceae.
This family contains many plants recognized as having ornamental
appeal such as Arum lilies, Monstera, A. titanium and Syngonium. The
family is charecterised by its inflorescence, consisting of fleshy
spike of small flowers(spadix) usually subtended by a large bract.
Elephant Yam occurs through the tropics, from India to New Guinea and
to Australia. The species was previously called Amorphophallus
campanulatus.
This plant produces a single inflorescence followed by a solitary
leaf. The plant is deciduous, dying back to a large underground corm,
weighing up to 9 kg, after the growing season. Some people regard the
inflorescence as bizarre. It comprises a large spadix crowned with a
bulbous purple knob, encircled by a fleshy purple and green blotched
spathe up to 50cm wide. On successful pollination of the female
flowers the spadix can extend to 2 meter tall. The fresh inflorescence
emits an odore reminiscent of rotting flesh to attract pollinating
carrion flies and beetles.Some people regard the inflorescence as
bizarre, they believe that the flower is the symbol of Lord Shiva's
phallus. The flowering of Zimikand or Elephant Yam, not usually seen
in northern India, In a village has evoked lot of curiosity among
people. Salempur, a village near lakhimpur city of kheri district
India, has suddenly become a much visited place, thanks to the great
nature mother which has many uniqe biological phenomenon. The people
started making a line to the place to see the plant. The inflorescence
blossomed in the muddy, home premises of the villagers. The unusual
feature of the flower is that its big phallus like flower emerged from
the earth in the last week of the May, high temperature may be main
cause to the flowering of this plant, I asked to the people of my
district that they saw that flower in his life or not, They never seen
it in his life, villagers said. It happens only after 9 to 12 year
like Bamboo's flowering.
A number of plants and flower symbol have a different significance
from that which is generally given to them, we are all familiar with
barely was the symbol of valva in ancient Rome, lotus is found
throughout antiquity, in art as well as in religion, was a sexual
symbol, representing to the ancients the combination of male and
female sexual organs. It is another expression of the sex worship of
that time. In Salempur village the worship of phallic flower, it is
the best example of phallicism in India, we can found the sex worship
and symbolism of primitive tribes in our literature and sculptures.
The Earth's smelliest flower has opened in the Kheri district. The
bloom is attracting thousands of admires. It is the first time the
flower, Elephant Yam, has bloomed in district Kheri, people and
botanist said.
It smells like a dead animal. The flower started to bloom at Salempur
village, district kheri, Uttar Pradesh, India, at morning Wednesday
when a village girl went his home's premises where this beautiful and
unusual flower has emerged from Soil, She started crying "what this
is"! People gathered at place where this flower was bloomed, but they
could not identified this phallus like flower, They felt it is the
symbol of Lord Shiva and start worship of this big flower by flowers.
Amorphophallus is a big genus of some 170 tropical and subtropical
tuberous herbaceous plants from the Araceae family. It belongs to a
family where most of the members contain calcium oxalate crystals.
This substance is toxic fresh and, if eaten, makes the mouth digging
in to them. However, calicium oxalate is easily broken down either by
thoroughly cooking the plant or by fully drying it and, in either of
these states, it is safe to eat the plant. People with a tendency to
rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones and hyperacidity should
take especial caution if including this plant in their diet.
The flower are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or
female but both sexes can be found on the same plant) are pollinated
by flies.
Medical Uses
The root is carminative, restorative, stomachic and tonic. It is dried
and used in the treatment of piles and dysentery, the fresh root acts
as an acrid stimulant and expectorant. It is much use in our country
in the treatment of acute rheumatism.
Krishna Kumar Mishra
77, Canal Road Shiv Colony Lakhimpur Kheri
Uttar Pradesh, India
Cellular-+91-9451925997