Would you wait in line for hours to smell something that smells like death? Right now, that’s what people in Victoria are doing.

It seems unbelievable, but there is a plant, aptly named ‘corpse flower’, that is said to smell like rotting corpses, and it is currently flowering in the Geelong Botanic Gardens. The corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum or titan arum, only flowers every seven to 10 years, and it has a very small window of 48 hours before withering and dying.

So for the next day or two, Geelong Botanic Gardens keeps its doors open for visitors to come see and smell the putrid stench! There’s even a live stream for those who can’t make the trip:

The Geelong Botanic Gardens have released a statement on their “Corpse plant in flower‘ page late last night about the foul smell:

“The corpse plant is in full bloom and has started to stink too, which is part of its famous pollination process. Visitors said the smell reminded them of a “stinking pond” or a “dead mouse.” Head to the Geelong Botanic Gardens to admire the plant with all your senses. He explains that the plant will flower for 48 hours and should be finished by 7 p.m. on November 12.

You may be wondering how Geelong actually got its hands on one of these huge smelly plants. It was donated by the South Australian Botanic Gardens several years ago, but this plant is actually native to the tropics of Indonesia. Amorphophallus titanum only grows in Sumatra and Java and has become endangered due to logging and habitat loss.

The craze surrounding such a fragrant plant is not only due to its scent, but also to its rarity. After two days of flowering (and smelling foul!), the titan arum flower will wither and die. The rest of the plant will remain underground for 10 years before starting the whole process again.

So, unsurprisingly, Geelong residents line up outside the door to smell the rotting flesh of the titan arum. The question is: would you try so hard for something this stinky?

Why does corpse flower smell so bad?

This may look like a deterrent or a way to protect against predators, but the corpse plant’s scent is actually meant to attract pollinators, especially scavenging insects. And the best way to attract this type of insect is to reproduce something dead; from the smell to the color, which is red and frozen. Scavengers and flies will then feed and lay eggs in the rotting flesh of the titan arum.

What does a corpse flower smell like?

A corpse flower is said to smell of a number of disgusting things, including dead animals, rotten eggs and cheese, and sweat. This plant attracts pollinators thanks to its smell composed of several odorous molecules:

• dimethyl disulfide (garlic)
• dimethyl trisulfide (rotten flesh)
• methyl thioacetate (sulfur)
• isovaleric acid (cheese or sweat)

Rachel Iorfino

Content producer

Rachel Iorfino is a content producer for Better Homes and Gardens, specializing in gardening and lifestyle content. With a BA in English and Visual Arts under her belt, Rachel excels in storytelling through her writing and content creation. Rachel is known for her love of native plants and flowers and will always recommend an Australian alternative to installing a turf lawn in your garden!

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