Perry the Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus titanum) is growing like Jack’s Beanstalk! The new shoot appeared about two weeks into September (see the photo from September 13, scaled to Tuan’s hand), and it was, as of Friday, October 4, approaching 20 inches / 50 centimeters in height!
I won’t make a declaration as to the nature of the shoot right now. It could be a new leaf, or it could be a new inflorescence (though I do have a provisional opinion…). Should it prove to be a leaf, we will have a period of rapid production of the new leaf, with a flowering of Perry at some point in 2016 or so. If it’s an inflorescence, we could have a massive floral display (with accompanying olfactory assault) around Thanksgiving. Given the rate of growth, we should know soon – once the sheaths that surround the shoot begin to part, the inner structure will be revealed.
Pictured with Perry in the accompanying photos are new-to-the-blog Perryophiles Nate Friedley (Gustavus ‘15), Serenity Mahoney (Gustavus ‘15), and Nick Ulen (Gustavus ‘15). If we have a flowering soon, watch for them as stars on the Perry webcams as the surreal spectacle begins.
Click here for the current Perry webcam (updated every five minutes). Perry is also on Facebook, and posts regularly.