Our fabulous
Dracunculus vulgaris flower
bloomed. It is such an awesome looking plant but it sure does
stink!! The nauseous smell that emanates from the
flower on the day it opens smells like something dead (rotting
corpse) and attracts shiny carrion flies as its chief pollinators.
See the flies all around in the photo? Ethan had to run to the
car gagging from the smell.
The 10-12 inch flowers range in color
from deep maroon to nearly black and last for 7-10 days but luckily
the odor lasts for only one day.
Flies attracted by the smell slide down the smooth
surface of the base of the flower and become trapped for a day by
the smooth surface which prevents them from climbing out.
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During this time they crawl all around in the flower
over the male and female parts spreading and gathering pollen and
then are freed to visit another flower and continue their role of
pollinators. These are pictures of the bugs that were trapped
inside for the night crawling out the next morning.
Look how covered in pollen they are!
After the petal withers, the fruits
begin to grow which hold the seeds for new plants.
Totally cool plant
Mine came with my house when we moved in but if you'd like to have
one for your yard, you can
order one online.
