Rare Corpse Flower Bloom in Sydney Captivates Thousands

The Royal Botanic Garden hosts the first Amorphophallus titanum bloom in 15 years, drawing crowds and global attention to its pungent spectacle.

The corpse flower, nicknamed Putricia, bloomed at Sydney's Royal Botanic Garden, emitting its signature stench of rotting flesh and garbage.
This marks the first bloom of an Amorphophallus titanum at the garden in 15 years, a rare event as the plant flowers only every 7 to 10 years in the wild.
Over 13,000 visitors attended the garden to witness the bloom, with a million more tuning in via a livestream that cultivated a devoted online community.
Garden staff performed a meticulous hand-pollination process using preserved pollen from another corpse flower to aid species conservation efforts.
Fewer than 1,000 corpse flowers exist worldwide, and the plant's bloom highlights the challenges facing its survival in the wild due to habitat loss and pollination barriers.