The corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum, is the world’s most infamous stinky plant, but it is just one of many smelly plants that produce foul odors to attract pollinators.
Commonly known as a titan arum, or “corpse flower,” it is a large, fast-growing plant in the aroid family. The number of titan arums, which are native to Indonesia and endangered in the wild, is growing in cultivation. The Missouri Botanical Garden has had 17 corpse flower blooms to date.
Each bloom, visitors flock to see the corpse flower and, more importantly, smell it. The smell is described by visitors as similar to smelly socks, rotten meat, Limburger cheese, or dirty diapers. The plant’s smell and color mimics rotting flesh to attract pollinators like flies.
But you don’t have to wait for a corpse flower bloom to get a whiff of something stinky at the Garden, other fly-pollinated plants are just as odorous. Look or sniff around for these smelly plants on your next visit to the Missouri Botanica Garden.
Voodoo Lilies
The voodoo lily, Sauromatum venosum, is native to Africa and Asia but one of the easiest hardy aroids to grow in the St. Louis landscape. The plant’s inflorescence can reach up to 2 feet tall and has a maroon and lime green speckled sheet.
Pollinator: Flies
Bloom Time: April and May
Where to find it in the Garden: The Heckman Bulb Garden
Devil’s Tongue
A close relative of the corpse flower, Devil’s tongue or Amorphophallus konjac, produces 3-4 foot blooms with a similar look, and smell, to its notorious cousin. While the corpse flower’s odor last only 24 hours, the devil’s tongue can emit a strong odor for several days until the flower wilts.
Bloom time: Early May
Pollinator: flies and carrion beetles
Where to find it in the Garden: The Heckman Bulb Garden
carrion flower
Aroids aren’t the only smelly plants! The carrion flower, Stapelia gigantea, is a succulent native to dry desert areas from Tanzania to South Africa. The plant produces star-shaped pale yellow flowers with maroon lines. It is also commonly called the giant toad flower or starfish flower.
Bloom time: September and October
Pollinator: Flies
Where to find it in the Garden: The Shoenberg Arid House and the Tropical Conservatory at the Butterfly House in Chesterfield.
Garden Visitors can also smell the carrion flower’s scent at the Smelling the Bouquet, the last exhibition from the Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum.
“Smelling the Bouquet: Plants & Scents in the Garden” explores the spectrum of scents plants create, inspired by the diverse live and scientific collections at the Garden. The highlight of the exhibition is the opportunity to sniff over two dozen scents, including some considered unpleasant.
The Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum is open from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily and included with Garden admission.
baobab
An African icon, baobab trees, Adansonia digitata, can grow up to 80 feet tall with a trunk as large as 45 feet wide. They are native to low elevation areas of tropical Africa and produce large fruits described to have a tang flavor combining grapefruit, pear, and vanilla. They produce creamy white flowers that bloom at night and emit a musky odor.
Pollinator: Fruit bats
Where to find it in the Garden: Climatron
It is also featured in Smelling the Bouquet.
Pelican Flower
The Pelican Flower, Aristolochia gigantea, is native to Central and South America. This is a vine that can grow up to 20 feet long and produces large burgundy flowers that have distinctive ivory white veins that smell like rotting meat.
Bloom time: June to July
Pollinator: Flies
Where to find it at the Garden: The Climatron
Dutchman’s Pipe
Related to the pelican flower, Dutchman’s pipe, Aristolochia tomentosa, is a Missouri native. This vine typically grows along streams and in moist woods primarily in counties south of the Missouri River. It can rapidly grow to 30 feet tall. It is a larval plant for the pipevine swallowtail butterfly. Its yellow flowers are often hidden among its dense foliage but produce an odor like rotting meat.
Bloom time: May to June
Pollinator: Flies
Where to find it in the Garden: The Kemper Center for Home Gardening, at the Native Butterfly Garden at the Butterfly House in Chesterfield, and at Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit
Bulbophyllum macrobulbum
Often revered for their beauty, the orchid family is one of the largest plant families with more than 30,000 species, including some that produce not-so-pleasant smells. Bulbophyllum macrobulbum orchids are known for their strong putrid scent. They are native to New Guinea and produce large, maroon blooms.
Pollinator: Flies
Bloom time: Winter
Where to find it in the Garden: in the Garden’s Orchid Show, which takes place in February annually.
Catherine Martin
Senior Public Information Officer
Leave a Reply