Corpse flower to bloom soon

The rare “corpse flower,” or titan arum plant native to Sumatra, is expected to bloom at the Botany Greenhouse this coming week.

Botanists say the plant has grown 14 inches in the past week and is now 59 inches tall and still growing.

The greenhouse, located at the rear of Birge Hall on Lathrop Drive, opens Monday, July 29, for daily public viewing of the titan arum, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Hours may be extended as the bloom time gets closer. Visitors must enter through the greenhouse garage behind Birge Hall, and will exit through the front of the building.

The titan arum or “corpse flower” is noted for a malodorous stench given off by blooms that can have a diameter of as much as four feet. The nascent bloom at UW–Madison is the second in Wisconsin in just over year.

No public parking is available in in the immediate area of the greenhouse. Nearby public parking includes the Grainger Hall garage outside the gated area (enter on Brooks Street), the lower level of the Lot 46 ramp (enter from Frances Street), Area 6 under Helen C. White Library on North Park Street, Lot 20 ramp on the north side of University Avenue between Charter Street and Randall Avenue, the Fluno Center ramp (enter from Frances Street), University Square (Lot 47) on West Johnson Street and the city’s Lake Street ramp.

A limited number of disabled parking stalls are available along Lathrop Drive, with a drop-off area at the greenhouse garage. Wheelchairs will be available for visitors with disabilities.