The Adelaide Botanic Garden is crossing its fingers for the bloom of its resident corpse flower, lovingly known as “Smellanie.” For Matt Coulter, it’s been more than two decades in the making. He’s the one who announced that Smellanie, aka titan arum or Amorphophallus titanum, would be ready to bloom as soon as Friday. The plant is set to start releasing its famously foul smell as soon as next week. As a result, that’s created a lot of public interest in how this comes out.
In 2021, Smellanie’s first bloom attracted about 8,000 guests to the garden. This year, the garden expects to surpass that number, aiming for over 10,000 visitors eager to experience the unique spectacle. In full bloom this summer, this corpse flower is one of four making their appearances. This kaleidoscopic showing is the result of a specialized, 20-year program managed by the Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium of South Australia.
The Journey of Smellanie
The record-breaking plant towered over the camera at 1.7 meters! It was recently relocated from its setting in the Adelaide Hills to the Bicentennial Conservatory, located in the heart of Adelaide’s CBD. This strategic relocation provides the perfect environment for the plants to flourish and will be more inviting for visitors. With a prominent tropical collection, the conservatory is a perfect home to Smellanie and its aromatic counterparts.
Matt Coulter of the Ocean Conservancy underscored the importance of this particular bloom. “It could be possibly into early next week, but all the parameters at the moment are showing it’s still not quite ready to open — but it’s not far away,” he stated. His passion, knowledge, and skill in cultivating and propagating these plants have established him as a leading figure within this specialized botanical pursuit.
A Growing Collection
That’s how the Urban Ag program began, with only three seeds, back in 2006. Today, it has blossomed into an incredible seedling population of over 250 titan arums, all thriving in the glasshouse at the Mount Lofty Botanic Garden. This phenomenal increase is a testament to the gardening team’s effort, creativity and commitment. It brings to the forefront the dire need to conserve these highly endangered flora endemic to Sumatra, Indonesia.
“The growth of this collection, and the enjoyment it brings to the public, is a testament to the skill, dedication and expertise of our team,” said Michael Harvey, reflecting on the success of their initiatives. What’s more, earlier this month, four titan arums bloomed simultaneously at the Cairns Botanic Gardens. This incredible show generated a ton of excitement for these uncommon blooming occurrences.
Anticipation Builds
In the last ten years alone, Australia has experienced over 20 flowering events. To meet that demand, fascination with these specialty crops continues to grow. The Adelaide Botanic Garden grows these vulnerable species to teach their visitors. In addition to sculpting the leaders of tomorrow, this initiative instills a greater understanding of biodiversity and conservation practices.
As anticipation builds for Smellanie’s bloom, visitors can look forward to experiencing one of nature’s most extraordinary phenomena. The Adelaide Botanic Garden is looking forward to welcoming thousands of visitors for this once in a generation event. This wonderful event will help strengthen its position as one of Australia’s finest botanical collections.
