Corpse Flower

Ok, I confess... I've been a bad blogger lately. I missed my own birthday post- though John sort of made up for it by showing the teapot that we painted together. It was a great birthday and this week has been filled with sewing and painting- I am desperately trying to finish several projects that have been sitting idle for awhile. And there is only 3 1/2ish weeks left so...I've been busy and creatively spent.

Though here is my new obsession, as of today.

WARNING: Horticultural nerdiness follows.

Corpse Flowers, aka Amorphophallus Titanum.

These are beautiful, unique, rare and deathly stinky flowers- two of which are currently blooming in the US. One named 'Lois' is blooming at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, while another older plant dubbed 'Perry' is busy doing his stinky thing at the Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota.

Native to the rain forests of Sumatra and growing up to 10 ft tall, this plant emits a corpse-like smell, in hopes of attracting flies and beetles for pollination. The deep purple-red leaf resembles a piece of meat and is the temperature of a human body, deepening the smell and fooling flesh-eating insects. The plants only bloom once or twice in 40 years, and even then just for a few days- a momentous occasion indeed.

For example Lois in Houston is expected to bring in 11,000 visitors today alone (the museum usually only gets about 1,000 visitors on any given weekday), while Perry has his own webcam set up so you can watch him bloom along with watching hordes of people holding their noses, coughing, children exclaiming- "That doesn't smell like a flower, it's so big momma! Why are there lots of flies in here?" - just heard those ones. Lois was coaxed open by a pile of rotting bananas laid nearby and here's the best bit- a couple is getting married at the museum today, stink and all. What an unexpected wedding gift, fun for all!

So while I should be getting ready for our quick trip to Denver this weekend, I'm watching a webcam of a Corpse flower bloom.