Rare Giant Voodoo Lily blooms at Floral Showhouse
It may have smelled like rotting flesh as it was flowering, but the unique Amorphophallus gigas plant, nicknamed the Giant Voodoo Lily, was a hit with visitors at the Floral Showhouse.
A relative of the titan arum, gigas had been growing at the Niagara Parks attraction in Niagara Falls since last Sunday — 30 centimetres (12 inches) per day and by Friday stood more than 3.96 metres high, even taller than the Titan Arum.
Another similarity was the rather unique and pungent smell both plants have released once they have bloomed.
“It smells like rotting flesh — like something had died,” said Bruce Macdonald, the attraction’s assistant supervisor.
“It was at its highest concentration of smell (Tuesday), and since then it’s dwindled off.”
Staff at the Floral Showhouse had been waiting nearly three years for the tall, skinny flower bud to open and bloom.
It was on display since last Monday, and remained through Friday.
“This is the first time we’ve had that variety of flower here on site,” said Macdonald, adding it came from a New Hampshire man.
“He raised Amorphophallus titanum, and also gigas, and a couple of other different types of species, as a hobby.”
Macdonald said the difference between the gigas and the titan arum is the flower structure.
“It has a long neck or stem … before you actually get to the flower, whereas the titan arum … is closer to the ground.”
Macdonald said the gigas, much like the titan arum, don’t last long.
“With the titans, we’ve had them last 20 hours, we’ve had them last two or three days,” he said.
“The gigas is kind of new to us on how long it would last. It started flowering last Sunday evening … and it’s still open (as of Friday). We tell people, when they ask us (how long it will last), probably a couple of days.”
Jessie Bond, manager of design for Niagara Parks, said visitors found the gigas “kind of neat.”
“The smell is a totally different story, of course, but it does draw in a crowd, especially in the horticultural world because it is such a unique species.”
Macdonald said it’s something visitors are not used to seeing.
“The smell is probably the biggest factor. It is an experience. Without the smell, it wouldn’t have that impact on somebody when they came to see it.”
He said the showhouse tries to display an extensive tropical collection.
“Over the years we’ve built it up. We try to bring in things that will actually fit in with our complex.”