VANCOUVER, Wash. – The rare corpse flower housed at Washington State University Vancouver is going to bloom at the end of June or first of July. Years ago, the plant’s corm (tuber) cloned. Now four plants reside in one pot. At this time, you can see a leaf from the corm that bloomed in 2019, fruit from the 2022 bloom and what will become the 2023 bloom. Soon growth from the fourth corm will appear, but it’s too early to tell if it will be a leaf or a bloom. Seeing the plants in three different life stages at one time is unusual.
This time, Titan VanCoug, as the corpse flower is known on campus, will bloom in its regular home in the Science and Engineering Building east stairwell. Because the plant has a 12-foot leaf with a seven-foot canopy, it cannot reasonably be removed from the building. You can watch the bloom develop on the Titan VanCoug webcam by visiting 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø’s website homepage at vancouver.wsu.edu. Information about viewing the bloom in person will be released when the event occurs.
Corpse flower blooms come and go quickly—just 24 – 48 hours. When they bloom, they emit an odor that is often described as rotting flesh. The odor attracts pollinators such as dung beetles and flesh flies that help ensure the continuation of the species.
About the corpse flower
The corpse flower (Latin name Amorphophallus titanum, also known as titan arum) is native to the limestone hills of Sumatra, Indonesia’s rainforests, the only place in the world where it naturally grows. They are among the world’s largest and rarest flowering structures. These plants are uncommon in cultivation. They bloom rarely—typically after seven to 10 years of growth and just once every four years or so afterward throughout a 40-year expected life span.
About Titan VanCoug
Titan VanCoug was raised by Professor Emeritus Steve Sylvester. He planted a seed from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s titan arum plant, named Big Bucky, in 2002. He cultivated it in a pot on his desk until it grew too large to contain in such a small space. It has grown in a stairwell in 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø’s Science and Engineering Building for some time. A late bloomer at 17, Titan VanCoug’s first bloom was most likely delayed because its corm (tuber) cloned.
Learn more by visiting vancouver.wsu.edu/titan-vancoug-live-bloom
About 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø
91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø is located at 14204 N.E. Salmon Creek Ave. in Vancouver, east of the 134th Street exit from either I-5 or I-205, or via C-TRAN bus service. Find a campus map at vancouver.wsu.edu/map. Parking is available at meters and in the Blue Daily Pay lot for $4 a day, $2 after 5 p.m. and free after 7 p.m. and on weekends.
91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø is in the homelands of Chinook and Taidnapam peoples and the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. As one of six campuses of the WSU system, 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø offers big-school resources in a small-school environment. The university provides affordable, high-quality baccalaureate- and graduate-level education to benefit the people and communities it serves. As the only four-year research university in Southwest Washington, 91³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏÍø helps drive economic growth through relationships with local businesses and industries, schools and nonprofit organizations.
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MEDIA CONTACT(S)
Brenda Alling, Office of Marketing and Communication, desk 360-546-9601/cell 360-901-5781 brenda_alling@wsu.edu