On January 24, 2025, the corpse flower, known as Putricia, bloomed at the Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney, Australia. This rare event attracted nearly 20,000 visitors eager to witness the flower’s notorious foul smell, marking the first bloom since 2010.
- Putricia is the world's foulest flower.
- Thousands visited Sydney's Royal Botanic Garden.
- Blooming lasts only 24 hours.
- Plant attracts pollinators with foul odor.
- Corpse flowers bloom every few years.
- Other gardens also host corpse flowers.
Putricia, a hybrid name combining “putrid” and “Patricia,” is a member of the Titan arum species, native to the rainforests of Sumatra, Indonesia. The plant is famous for its large size and strong odor, which resembles rotting flesh, designed to attract pollinators like carrion beetles and flies. In full bloom, Putricia can reach heights of up to nine feet.
Researchers at the Royal Botanic Garden first noticed signs of Putricia’s impending bloom in late December 2024. The bloom lasted approximately 24 hours, captivating both in-person visitors and those watching via livestream. The event was significant, as it was the first corpse flower bloom at the garden in over a decade. The following key details highlight the event’s impact:
- Estimated 20,000 visitors attended the bloom.
- Hundreds of thousands viewed the event online.
- Putricia’s bloom was the fifth documented at the garden.
While the bloom has ended, corpse flowers are known to bloom every few years, providing opportunities for future viewings. Other botanic gardens, such as the U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington D.C. and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, also host similar plants, with the latter announcing a bloom of a rarer species shortly after Putricia’s event.
In summary, Putricia’s bloom at the Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney was a noteworthy event, attracting significant attention both locally and online. With the rarity of such blooms, future opportunities to see corpse flowers will continue to draw crowds and intrigue plant enthusiasts.
