How To See Rare 'Corpse Flower' Bloom In CA; Smells Like Rotting Flesh

SANTA CRUZ, CA — If you've never seen — or perhaps more appropriately, smelled — rotting flesh, now's your chance.

The so-called "corpse flower," or A. titanum, is on display at the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum. It's been nurtured in the greenhouses for the last decade with climate-controlled greenhouses that create the perfect habitat for the tropical plant.

While it grows taller daily, it hasn't bloomed — yet. When it does, it'll be quick, and it'll have a "strange, disgusting, and alluring stench" for just 24 hours, the arboretum said. The smell is meant to attract certain pollinators, such as flies and beetles. The plants can take up to take 10 years to reach the necessary size to bloom.

The endangered tropical plant is native to Sumatra, Indonesia. Don't blink, you might miss it. The plant collapses after a couple of days.

"It is a matter of days til the flower is mature, and the stench begins," the arboretum said in a Facebook comment Thursday. "The flower has a two-day span, so be ready to come. They usually start to stink around sundown, so we will stay open the first night until 11pm."

The pungent plant is located outside the front office. Those who park in the visitor's parking can head through the Australia garden and follow the green signs to the meeting rooms and restrooms. People who are not students or members and want to get up and close and personal to the flower will have to pay $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $5 for kids.

As of Thursday morning, the flower still hadn't bloomed, the arboretum said. For those who can't swing the trek, the arboretum said it will livestream the blooming. Patch will update this article once the link becomes live.

In Michigan, a corpse flower bloomed for the first time in seven years in April, releasing its distinctive rotting odor throughout a greenhouse at Grand Valley State University.