July 8, 1999
MEDIA ADVISORY: UW’s “corpse flower” begins its collapse
The Amorphophallus titanum, or corpse flower, that started blooming in the University of Washington botany greenhouse yesterday began to collapse this afternoon, signaling the end of the bloom’s short life.
The tall central structure called the spadix had grown to more than 6 feet, gaining more than a foot of that in the last week. It started its collapse about 24 hours after the plant began to open Wednesday afternoon, when it released its powerful stench, like rotting animal flesh, for several hours. The leafy spathe, which is deep red or maroon, still had not opened completely at 3 p.m. today but could do so in the next day, said Douglas Ewing, the botany greenhouse manager. It also could take a day for the spadix to completely collapse, he said.
The plant remains on public display. More than 1,000 people viewed the plant today, in addition to more than 1,000 who saw it during the last several days. It is the 10th time this century an A. titanum has bloomed in the United States and the first time west of St. Louis.
###
For more information, contact Ewing at (206) 543-0436 or dewing@u.washington.edu
