Flowers That Smell Like The Floor Of A Taxi Cab

By Chad Kremp

Flowers That Smell Like The Floor Of A Taxi Cab

“Take time to stop and smell the flowers”, the old saying goes, but there are some flowers that this just doesn’t apply to, unless you are a fly or carrion beetle. Some plants smell like rotting meat, feces, corpses, and skunks. Why would a flower smell like this? Well, the purpose of flowers is to attract pollinators. Flowers that stink are typically pollinated by creatures like carrion beetles, bats, various types of flies, and certain moths and butterflies--animals that feast on rotten and foul smelling foods. Not surprisingly, many of these plants look like nightmarish aliens from science fiction movies, with petals and structures that mimic the colors and textures of rotting meat. I hope that you enjoy learning about these fascinating plants and try growing a few of the widely available ones yourself. Here are Flowers That Smell Like The Floor Of A Taxi Cab.... Rafflesia arnoldii (Corpse Flower) If you know about endangered plants, you will no doubt remember this fascinating flower. Rafflesia arnoldii, commonly known as the corpse flower, is the largest singular flower in the world, growing up to three feet in diameter and weighing as much as twenty-four pounds. The Indonesian rain forest flower is a parasite with no leaves, and bursts from its host vine like a gigantic, putrid monster. People say that it smells like the rotting flesh of a corpse, but that doesn’t stop it from being a major tourist attraction. Hydnora Africana (Jackal’s Food) This South African parasitic flower, with its jaw-like leaves complete with “teeth” looks like a monster out of a sci-fi movie and has a monstrous smell to match. Jackal’s food is said to smell strongly of feces, and not without good reason—its pollinators are dung and carrion beetles. The beetles crawl into the flower and are trapped in the flower tube until the plant fully blooms. Ginkgo biloba Here is a plant a little closer to home, so close in fact you may have one lining your street. The Ginkgo tree is a fascinating tree in that it has been around for more than 200 million years, and it has no living relatives. That isn’t the tree’s only claim to fame--the Ginkgo tree produces a fruit that has a smell that has been described as that of vomit, dog poop, stinky feet, rotten eggs, and rancid butter. Stapelia species (Starfish Flower) Photo by: Steve L. Martin Another South African stinker, the star flower, or carrion flower, is a plant that you can grow at home as a houseplant or outdoors in warmer regions—if you have some air freshener handy. There are actually 40 species in the Stapelia genus, most with flowers that are hairy and meaty looking. The colors and sizes range greatly, and some, although strange looking, are quite beautiful. This is another flower that smells like rotting flesh and looks like meat in order to attract blowflies for pollination purposes. Symplocarpus foetidus (Skunk Cabbage) Skunk cabbage grows native in my home state of Pennsylvania as well as many other states in the U.S. It is found in marshes, near streams and ponds, and in other wet areas. The spathe can be yellow, maroon, or mottled maroon and green depending on the species; it surrounds a spadix bearing tiny yellow flowers. This floral structure looks like a cross between the flower of a peace lily and the egg of an alien. The flowers produce their own heat and are said to smell like skunk. The skunk cabbage flower heats up in order to better disperse its odor, which attracts flies, beetles, and other pollinators. When leaves are crushed or damaged, the smell of decomposing flesh emanates. Amorphophallus titanium (Titan Arum) Another plant that I discussed last week, the titan arum is an endangered plant native to the rain forests of Sumatra and spends most of its life cycling between being a dormant tuber and a leafed tuber. Rarely, the plant sends up a bloom instead of a leaf and when this happens, it is truly spectacular. The titan arum boasts the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world, according to some sources, which is located on the eight to ten foot spadix. The spadix is skirted by the showy, maroon colored spathe. Like the skunk cabbage, this plant heats up in order to help spread its stench and attract flies. The smell has been described as that of rotting fish, decaying flesh, and decomposing corpses; it has been reported that the smell is so bad that people have passed out from it when smelling it up close. The arum family holds a variety of stinking plants besides the titan arum, some of which are the voodoo lily, the dead horse lily, the previously discussed skunk cabbage, and the vampire lily. If you dare, you can try to grow the voodoo lily and the vampire lily at home as they are readily available for purchase. Please check out these links to read more about foul smelling flowers: The World’s Largest and Smelliest Flowers 10 of the World’s Stinkiest Flowers Stinking Flowers Malodorous Flowering Plants The Dead Horse Lily