Tim Grigg with the mighty Titan before it bursts into flower and a seedling which he has nurtured
A giant specimen of the world's biggest, smelliest flower is about to burst into bloom at the Eden Project in Cornwall.
The extremely rare Titan arum, known as the corpse flower due to its revolting smell, is now installed in a pot in the sultry depths of the Malaysia area in Eden's Rainforest Biome – the biggest greenhouse in the world.
The plant – real name Amorphophallus titanum – hails from Sumatra and is a true giant, capable of growing to a size of 3m (9ft 10ins). The plant is distinguished by its yellowy, fleshy spike known as a spadix. This is wrapped in a single cream leaf which, when opened, reveals a rich crimson inside.
When the plant is ready to attract pollinators, the spike heats up and gives off the smell which disgusts humans but is very attractive to insects. It then develops the fruit which attracts birds.
Tim Grigg has been growing titans at Eden's Watering Lane nursery for seven years from a batch of seeds donated by Bonn Botanical Garden in Germany. This is the fourth time he has nurtured a titan to flower and he believes this could be the biggest one yet as the tuber – the plant’s underground storage organ – weighs 61kg, almost twice as heavy as any of the previous specimens to flower at Eden.
Tim said: "It looks like being a real whopper. It will be exciting to see how it develops over the next week or so and how big the flower is when it opens. We have never had one blossom in the height of summer before. We will need to warn people about the pong. It is quite revolting but fortunately you only smell it when you are in close proximity of the open flower."
