It is not easy to find plants in the jungle with the largest flower in the world: they grow singly, bloom at different times of the year and bloom for no more than four days. But those lucky enough to see Arnold’s Rafflesia in all its glory are seldom disappointed: the bright red spot among the dark green jungle looks too strange, unusual and unusual.
People who have found this flower, enjoy the fragrance of the amazing plant is unlikely to succeed, because the opened bud has a far unpleasant smell. In turn, such a fragrance is very liked by forest flies, they fly to it like bees to honey and, getting bogged down in the inflorescence, contribute to the pollination of the flower.
Rafflesia belongs to the parasitic flowering plants of the Rafflesia family, and numbers over 30 species. It grows only on the territory of Southeast Asia: mainly the islands of Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, the Philippines and the Malacca Peninsula. Representatives of this family can be found only in the jungle, the area of which is rapidly decreasing due to massive deforestation of tropical forests, and therefore all species are endangered.
These amazing plants are remarkable primarily because the flowers of some species, such as Rafflesia Arnold, weigh from eight to ten kilograms and have a record size in diameter – about a meter, being the widest flower on earth. It is true that not all species of this flower possess such a size. There is another type of plant, the flowers of which are also considered large – Patma with a diameter of the inflorescence of 30 cm. But the size of such representatives of the Rafflesia family as Sapriya and Rhizanthes ranges from 10 to 20 cm.
The family itself was named after Thomas Stamford Raffles, the leader of an expedition to the island of Sumatra, who also became famous for founding Singapore. But the first plant found was Arnold’s Rafflesia – it got its name thanks to Joseph Arnold, who participated in the same expedition.
It is interesting that locals called this plant “lotus flower”, “corpse lily”, “scavenger flower”, “dead lotus” and used it as a medicine: women drank the extract from the buds to restore the figure after childbirth, and men used the flowers of Rafflesia to enhance potency.
The plant discovered by Joseph Arnold was small for its species, but even then it was impressive: its diameter was about ninety centimeters, and it weighed no more than six kilograms. Botanists later found larger specimens. The maximum diameter of the flower, which was recorded by scientists, was 106.7 cm – and at the moment it is the widest detected flower of our planet.
Biological characteristics of the plant
Despite the fact that in appearance Rafflesia Arnoldi strongly resembles a huge flower, in fact it is not, because being a parasitic plant, it does not need photosynthesis, and therefore leaves, stems and roots, which actively participate in this process, the largest flower in the world does not have.
Rafflesia Arnoldi needs nutrients for its full development, it gets them by feeding on the sap of its “host” with the help of sucking roots. Therefore, the “host” on which the parasite will live for several years, it chooses very carefully and treats it with care, without causing much harm.
As a “host” Rafflesia suits only that type of plants, the juices of which roots are able to awaken its seeds. Then the “host plant” will determine the direction of growth of the suckers, by which the parasite will take the substances it needs.
The largest flower in the world prefers to grow on a liana of the cissus genus or on trees, part of the root system of which protruded to the surface. Once on these plants, the seeds of Rafflesia release a thin thread and penetrate under the bark of the “host” without hurting him in any way.
Rafflesia life
After Rafflesia seeds with the help of suction roots penetrate into the liana, they do not show themselves in any way for a year and a half (the seeds that could not penetrate into the tree bark eventually die off).
After eighteen months, a bud-like thickening begins to form on the roots or stem of the “host”. When the growth reaches the size of a child’s fist, it opens – a bud with brick-red petals appears. Usually it takes at least three years for this process of Rafflesia arnoldi.
It takes from nine to eighteen months for the bud to mature and transform into a flower. The unfurled flower of Rafflesia Arnold has five petals that are about 3 cm thick and 45 cm long.
These petals are usually red or brown in color and covered with a huge number of white warty growths and spots. Despite the long maturation, the flower itself does not live more than four days, after which it begins to decompose, and Rafflesia Arnold fairly soon transformed into a black shapeless mass.
