Corpse plant in bloom

A rare phenomenon unfolded at the Geelong Botanic Gardens: the corpse plant, Amorphophallus titanum, was in bloom.

The corpse plant bloomed in the Conservatory in the Geelong Botanic Gardens in November 2024.

Witnessing a corpse flower in full bloom is an exceptional opportunity, as it only blooms unpredictably, often just once every ten years. The corpse plant bloom itself lasts only 24 to 48 hours, so visitors needed to visit quickly to catch the unique sight.

Also named the Titan Arum, this extraordinary plant is renowned for the powerful smell it releases when it blooms—a scent likened to rotting flesh, hence its nickname, the "corpse plant."

Key Information

In November 2024, over 20,000 people came to see the corpse flower for its first bloom at the Geelong Botanic Gardens.
Visitors came from as far as Alice Springs, Perth, Sydney and Melbourne to experience this rare bloom, supporting local businesses and the economy.
To make sure as many people could come to view this rare event, the Conservatory stayed open 24 hours during the bloom.
The corpse plant web page with updates received 67,000 views. Our live stream was extremely popular, with over 350,000 views from around Australia and the world.
The corpse plant will restart the process of storing energy until it has enough to produce another flower. This may take another seven to 10 years.

Thank you to everyone who visited for your patience, and thanks to the amazing Geelong Botanic Gardens team who worked around-the-clock during this time.

Update from Monday, 18 November

Big thanks to everyone who’s been captivated by our amazing Corpse Flower at the Geelong Botanic Gardens over the past two weeks! Whether you stopped by in person or tuned in from afar, your enthusiasm has truly blossomed.
It's been an aromatic journey, and we're thrilled to have shared the experience with you all.
Our livestream has now officially ended. Thank you to all that watched.

Update from Thursday, 14 November

Now that the plant has finished blooming, the Conservatory will be open from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm today and Friday 15 November.
The Conservatory will return to its usual opening hours of 9.00 am to 3.00 pm from Saturday 16 November.
As the corpse flower has opened, we have removed the thermal camera from the live stream.
The live stream will be available to watch at geelong.link/CorpsePlantStream until the plant collapses and goes into dormancy.

Update from Tuesday, 12 November

The corpse flower has started to close, and things are starting to wind down.
We'll be closing at midnight on Tuesday 12 November, with the last chance to join the line at 10.00pm, then re-opening on Wednesday, 13 November from 9.00am - 7.00pm.
We've been overwhelmed by the support from the community who came in their thousands to see this extremely rare event.

Update from Monday, 11 November

Corpse plant news from 7.00pm

The corpse plant is in full bloom and has started stinking, too, which is part of it’s famous pollination process. Visitors have said the smell reminds them off a ‘stinky pond’ or a ‘dead mouse’. Come on down to the Geelong Botanic Gardens to take in the plant with all your senses.
The Conservatory is now open 24 hours until 7pm Tuesday, 12th of November. We recommend people come late at night or early in the morning to beat the crowds.
For those coming to the Geelong Botanic Gardens, please be patient and respect our staff and each other as waiting times may be long. Please come prepared for the weather.
If you can’t make the trip or prefer not to experience the plant in its full stench, you can head to our live stream at geelong.link/CorpsePlantStream

Corpse plant news from 12.00pm

The process of the corpse plant opening has begun, and we anticipate it being in bloom by the late afternoon on Monday 11 November.
The Conservatory is now open 24 hours until at least tomorrow, Tuesday, 12 November for all to see and smell this natural phenomenon. Happening once in 10 years, the corpse plant will only be open for about 24 to 48 hours.
The name comes from the plant smelling like a rotting corpse, and we expect the smell to begin soon.
For those coming to the Geelong Botanic Gardens, please be patient as we’re expecting a lot of visitors, and treat our staff and each other with respect.

Update from Saturday, 9 November

Our experts at the Geelong Botanic Gardens are continuing to watch the situation, and while we can't predict an exact time for flowering we'll let you know as soon as we have more information.
Thanks to the over 600 people who came to see the plant today, and to our wonderful gardens staff who are looking after the plant and keeping everyone informed.
Meanwhile, our livestream has had over 55,000 views, with a total watch time of over 9,500 hours.
We've had people watching as far away as Nepal, Thailand, India, the UK and the USA as well as right across Australia.

Update from Friday, 8 November

Our corpse plant is getting ready for the big day. We have updated the live stream from the Conservatory to now include a thermal camera, so we can all monitor its temperature.
The plant will heat up close to 40 degrees shortly before the leaves will open up to present its phenomenal bloom.
If you're planning to come to the Geelong Botanic Gardens on Sunday 10 November, we highly encourage you to come after 11.00am as Run4Geelong is on.
For traffic updates head to geelong.link/Run4Geelong

Update from Thursday, 7 November

Our corpse plant is still growing and getting ready to bloom. The plant grew 5cm in the last 24 hours and is now 1.44m tall.
While the plant is getting more bulbous, the top of the frilly spathe is also turning red and is slowly starting to detach from the spadix, showing us that it is getting ready to present its magnificent flowers.
We are continuing to monitor the corpse plant closely and will let you know as soon as it’s in bloom.
3,339 people visited the Gardens across the last week to see the corpse plant prior to blooming, and we're seeing around 700 people pass through daily.

Update from Tuesday, 5 November

We now have a livestream of the corpse plant from the Conservatory at the Geelong Botanic Gardens. To see the live stream, head to geelong.link/CorpsePlantStream or click on the embedded video above.

Update from Monday, 4 November

The corpse plant has grown nearly 10cm in one day and will continue to grow until it starts blooming.
The plant’s temperature is currently measuring a balmy 24 degrees Celsius, which will spike in temperature as soon as it starts blooming and could go as high as 40 degrees.
The frilled spathe of the inflorescence has started changing colour, which is a sign that it is getting ready to bloom and once blooming, will release a powerful smell similar to rotting flesh to attract pollinators.
Once the corpse flower is in full bloom, the Geelong Botanic Gardens will open the Conservatory for 24 hours so all can enjoy seeing this exceptional plant.

Nurturing the corpse plant at the Geelong Botanic Gardens

The City of Greater Geelong has been attentively nurturing the rare corpse plant (Amorphophallus titanum) at the Geelong Botanic Gardens, which is now nearing its much-anticipated bloom.

The Geelong Botanic Garden was gifted two Amorphophallus titanum corms from Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium of South Australia in 2021.

Through the Geelong Botanic Gardens team's dedicated efforts, visitors have a rare chance to experience this unique bloom - an event that typically occurs only once every decade. To extend this opportunity worldwide, we are offering a livestream of the bloom, allowing plant enthusiasts and curious viewers around the globe to witness the Amorphophallus titanum in its full, fleeting glory.

Stay tuned for updates on the bloom's timing and extended Geelong Botanic Gardens visiting hours during this rare event.