The Return of Alice the Amorphophallus

May 2005

closing begins, hole cut to remove pollen, May 15, 2005

closing begins, May 15, 2005

74.5 inches, OPEN, May 14, 2005

detail, 73.5 inches, May 12, 2005

72 inches, May 11, 2005

67.5 inches, May 9, 2005

53.5 inches, May 5, 2005

Amorphophallus Diary by Jennifer Davit, Conservatory Manager
May 16, 2005

Clearly I am breathing in too much of the Amorphophallus stench. Yesterday I was ready for a nap after a very busy day of greeting visitors who had come to see and whiff Alice. I did not, however, get much of a nap. I was talking about Alice the Amorphophallus in my sleep; this is a clear sign of Amorphophallus overload. My boyfriend quickly woke me up once I began saying, “…and you do not know whether a single leaf or a bloom will form from the underground tuber...” I thought today that I would be relieved of the scent, but to my dismay (and delight), another species came into bloom; Amorphophallus paeoniifolius, which produces a bloom less than 12 inches high, and a stench that is almost more pungent than Alice’s. This is fortunate for visitors who did not get to smell Alice over the weekend, but at the moment I am trying to stay in epiphyte room where orchids are perfuming the air with scents of chocolate and coconut!

Click here for the complete Amorphophallus Diary

May 15, 2005, 4:00 pm

May 14, 2005

May 10, 2005

May 5, 2005

Daily Measurements
Date/time	Height in inches
5/16/05	74.5, closing, no odor
5/15/05	74.5, odor still present, closing begins, pollen was collected
5/14/05, 7:00 am	74.5 OPEN with odor
5/14/05, 7:00 am	74.5 OPEN with strong odor
5/13/05, 7:00 am	74.5
5/12/05, 7:00 am	73.25
5/11/05, 7:00 am	72
5/10/05, 7:30 am	69
5/9/05, 7:30 am	67.5
5/8/05, 10:30 am	64.5
5/7/05, 10:00 am	61.0
5/6/05, 4:05 pm	59.0
5/6/05, 7:30 am	57.5
5/5/05, 7:00 am	53.5
5/4/05, 7:00 am	48
5/3/05, 9:00 am	44
5/2/05, 9:00 am	41
5/1/05, 10:00 am	40

Tuber at repotting, March 30, 2005 80 pounds. 12 inches high, 21 inches in diameter, with a circumference of 69 inches

After hand-pollination. 'Mr. Stinky' with ripe seeds, 2003 Photo: Lisa Remeny