Learning Something New

 I PVR a lot of my shows now on TV - cannot stand all the commercials which I fast-forward through, or don't have the time to sit and watch when a particular show is on - I find it very handy.  The one I am currently watching is  Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life on TVO.  I have to say some of these shows introduce me to things that I have never in my life thought of.  These two photos are a case in point.  The flower above was shown on this program.  It was called the larges flower in the world - and it does look pretty large.  Here is what wikipedia says about it:

Amorphophallus titanum (from Ancient Greek amorphos, "without form, misshapen" + phallos, "phallus", and titan, "giant" ), known as the titan arum, is a flowering plant with the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world. The titan arum's inflorescence is not as large as that of the talipot palm, Corypha umbraculifera, but the inflorescence of the talipot palm is branched rather than unbranched.

Due to its odor, which is reminiscent of the smell of a decomposing mammal, the titan arum is characterized as a carrion flower, and is also known as the "corpse flower", or "corpse plant" (Indonesian: bunga bangkai – bunga means flower, while bangkai means corpse or cadaver). For the same reason, the title "corpse flower" is also attributed to the genus Rafflesia which, like the titan arum, grows in the rainforests of Sumatra.

But when I googled largest flower in the world, the flower above came up.  Rafflesia arnoldii is a member of the genus Rafflesia. It is noted for producing the largest individual flower on earth, and a strong odor of decaying flesh - the latter point earning it the nickname of "corpse flower". It is an endemic plant that occurs in the rainforests of Sumatra Island, Indonesia. But then the same species (Arnoldi) also has reported to be found in Gunung Gading National Park, Sarawak (East Malaysia). Although there are some plants with larger flowering organs like the Titan Arum and Talipot palm, those are technically clusters of many flowers.

Rafflesia arnoldii (Indonesian: padma raksasa) is one of the three national flowers in Indonesia, the other two being the white jasmine and moon orchid. It was officially recognized as a national "rare flower" (Indonesian: puspa langka) in Presidential Decree No. 4 in 1993.

So, two of the largest flowers, both vying for the name corpse flower, both indigenous to Indonesia... 

something I have never before even thought about.  Thank you TV.