Science – Stuttgart – A giant flower blooms at the University of Hohenheim – Wikiwand

Hohenheim (dpa/lsw) – After two years, the giant tree’s flowers are blooming again in the gardens of Hohenheim University. The flowers of the plant, two to three meters high, rarely appear in Hohenheim as recently as 2021, Hohenheim University announced on Friday.

The flower on Saturday was 2.03 meters high and 1.03 meters in diameter – and it was always accompanied by a bad smell: according to the University of Hohenheim, the plant exudes the scent of rotten meat and carrion to attract flies and pollinators.

For anyone who can overlook the smell, Hohenheim’s gardens offer special opening times on weekends: on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., visitors can see the “surprise,” Where Venus is named in 2021, show. Interested parties can also follow the opening of the odorless flower via a live webcast.

It is not entirely clear how long the Titan arum will continue to bloom, says Helmut Dalitz, scientific director of the Hohenheim Gardens: “We think that the sacrum, that is, the velvety layer of the plant, will certainly remain unfurled. Tomorrow and then the slow wilting process will begin.”

Surprise was bred by Palmengarten Frankfurt in 2003 and delivered to Hohenheim Gardens in 2019. The plants usually grow with tubers weighing up to 120 kilograms on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 230624-99-169674/3