A quick look at the strangely intriguing Rafflesia
THIS week I would like to do things a little differently and look at a flower that currently cannot be cultivated or grown by human intervention. It is relatively rare and found only in some areas of our state. Although it also grows in many other tropical areas, it is still a unique and strange flower.
The Rafflesia is a bizarre flower without leaves that just springs up from the forest floor when the environmental factors are favourable.
Unlike other flowers that attract pollinators with fragrant perfumes, Rafflesia strangely emits a foul smell of rotting meat, which sends a signal through the jungle for pollination purposes. The power of the flower does not diminish – whether you’re seeing it for the first time or have seen it occur many times, it remains a miraculous sight to behold.
Background
There are two genera in the parasitic Rafflesiaceae family, which contains 29 species. In 1818, naturalist and surgeon Dr Joseph Arnold explained the mystique and unique natural occurrence of this flower, which he named after Sir Stamford Raffles. By then the flower was well described and public is ed. During my trip to New Zealand recently, I had the opportunity to read an interesting publication ‘The Plantsman’ from the United Kingdom.
It described the Rafflesia as the spectacular giant – the largest flower in the plant kingdom at over 100cm in diameter with a weight of 10kg.
During the 19th century, successive waves of naturalists travelled to Southeast Asia in search of Rafflesia, but it was difficult to find. They returned to Europe with awe-inspiring reports of this giant flower and its stench – the smell of a corpse. It is still not well understood and is still rare.
This fungus lives on a host plant called Tetrastigma – a species of vine from the Vitaceae family.
The flower sprouts from a large bud that resembles a cabbage. It is strange as one cannot see anything more than the perianth tube, which branches into the lobes. The inner wall of the tube is covered with hair-like appendages that are used for species identification.
The rusty orangey-red petals are dotted with white or creamy warts. The colouring pattern is also a key indicator for identification purposes.
Reproduction
These parasitic Rafflesia are either male or female. In the centre of the perianth tube stands the column of reproductive organs, anthers for male flowers or ovaries for female flowers are located there.
The large fleshy Rafflesia begins to deteriorate after four to six days as the lobes blacken and wither. It is this stench that attracts pollinators like bluebottle and carrion flies. Even small animals may help to disperse the seeds to other areas through their droppings.
Seeds may germinate and grow into a new Rafflesia flower when they land on the right host like Tetrastigma, when the absorptive organ can spread through the host vine.
The Rafflesia does not seem to damage the host as it is a long-term parasitic fungus that takes over one year to show the successful parasitism with a small bud that eventually blooms into a large flower.
In Indonesia, it is said that the cabbage-like buds are used for traditional medicine remedies. Production of the flowers has also been greatly hindered by deforestation and habitat destruction through agricultural development of the wilderness.
I hope you have found this week’s column interesting. Do send me an email if you have questions, comments, or suggestions. Happy gardening.