Giant ‘corpse plant’ draws crowds in Southern California

ENCINITAS, Calif. (AP) — The bloom of a giant and stinky Sumatran flower nicknamed a “corpse plant” because it smells like a dead body is huge drawing crowds to a Southern California botanical garden. The bloom of the Amorphophallus titanum plant started Sunday afternoon at the San Diego Botanic Gardens in Encinitas. By Monday morning, timed-entry tickets were sold out. The San Diego Union-Tribune says more than 5,000 people are expected to visit the garden by Tuesday evening. The bloom of the “corpse plant” lasts just 48 hours and during its peak it emits a putrid odor of rotting flesh to attract carrion beetles and flesh flies that help in the pollination process.