The bud looks like rotten cabbage:

The flowers of most species are bisexual, but some types of rafflesia are polygamous plants: along with bisexual flowers, male flowers are also observed.
Pollinating insects (usually forest flies) are attracted to the flowers by the sight and smell of decaying meat, for which they are also called “corpse lilies.” The resemblance of flowers to rotting pieces of meat is achieved by the corresponding coloring of the perianth - on a red, poisonous red, brown background (sometimes with a purple tint) there are light, irregularly located spots of irregular shape. First, the insects fall onto the disk, then fall lower into the annular furrow where the anthers are located.
The development of rafflesia occurs slowly: from sowing the seeds to the appearance of the buds, it takes about three years, and it takes another nine months to a year and a half for the bud to turn into an open flower. But the lifespan of the rafflesia flower itself is very short - only two to four days, after which it begins to decompose, gradually turning into a shapeless black mass.
The fruits are berry-shaped, containing a viscous mass (pulp). Numerous small seeds are immersed in it. The seed embryo is undifferentiated, with an oily endosperm. The number of seeds in one fruit is from two to four million. Fetal development time is about seven months.
The seeds are dispersed (presumably) by large animals (wild pigs and elephants, in whose limbs the contents of crushed fruits stick), small mammals, and insects, including ants.

Local residents of the island of Sumatra, in whose forests Rafflesia was discovered, have long known this plant and used it for medicinal purposes. In particular, an extract from rafflesia buds was used to restore the figure of women after childbirth, and the flowers were used to enhance sexual function in men.

Many thanks to RianoneL for the material.

The principle of development and reproduction of rafflesia is interesting - a tiny grain is brought to the vine by ants, where, having fallen into a tiny crevice, it sends its roots into the wood of the vine. The roots of rafflesia are similar to mycelium, so the future giant grows firmly into the trunk, preparing for future “prosperity”. It literally penetrates all the tissues of the host with its thread-roots, sucking all the juices out of it. This process is long: first a bud is formed, then a bud, and the blossoming flower can only be contemplated after 7 months.

Beauty is a terrible force, but it’s not really about beauty; the smell that blooming rafflesia has is terribly unpleasant. In its homeland, the plant is called the corpse lily (on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia), the flower looks amazing, but the smell of decaying meat can spoil the impression a little. But it is simply necessary to attract insects.

The plant blooms for 5-7 days; if rafflesia is not pollinated during this period, it dies, leaving behind something dark and smelly. But, as a rule, flies like the “attractive” aroma and they flock to it with pleasure. The trouble is that the flower that grows on the vine is unisexual: male or female. If the flies do not find a mate for it in the area, then all the efforts of the plant will be lost - both it and its owner will die.

But if a miracle happens, after pollination the flower turns into an unprecedented fruit that stores a large number of seeds. And then, in the process of reproduction, elephants or other large animals play a large role. Elephants, while walking, crush the fruits (they are very hard) and carry the seeds of the miracle flower for many kilometers, where the ants already take over the baton.

A huge number of tourists are attracted by the blooming rafflesia; these tours are prepared in advance. Since local residents claim that the plant has not only unique beauty, but also healing qualities, there are only more people wanting to see this rare flower. They say that a decoction of this flower has a beneficial effect on sexual function, and the prepared extract from the buds of this amazing plant helps quickly return a woman’s figure to normal after childbirth. But this fact has not yet been verified - the flower is among the rare and endangered species, and each discovered specimen is protected by biologists and ecologists, hoping to obtain seeds from it and learn how to propagate it under artificial conditions.

On the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan, as well as in some other areas of Southeast Asia, an unusual plant grows - Rafflesia (Latin Rafflesia), which looks like a huge flower, but in fact it is not a flower and its smell is also far from pleasant , but, nevertheless, the plant is quite interesting.

It will take from 9 months to a year and a half for a bud to develop into an open flower, but the lifespan of a flower after opening is very short - only two to four days, after which it begins to decompose, gradually turning into a shapeless black mass.

Although the plant looks like a flower, due to the fact that photosynthesis is not used for its existence like ordinary flowers, this “flower” does not have leaves or other organs that use this process. After ripening, the bud opens, creating a fetid smell of decaying meat (that’s why they are also called “corpse lilies”), thus attracting forest flies for pollination; to make it more similar to rotting meat, the color of Rafflesia’s anther also takes on a brownish-red hue.

Rafflesia flowers are notable for the fact that their size is simply huge; some types of rafflesia can reach a diameter of up to 1 meter and a weight of up to 8 kilograms. Among the 40 species, the largest are Rafflesia arnoldii and Rafflesia patma, which has a smaller flower, but also quite large - from 20-30 cm.

Rafflesia fruits are berry-shaped, containing a viscous mass (pulp). Numerous small seeds are immersed in it. The seed embryo is undifferentiated, with an oily endosperm. The number of seeds in one fruit is from two to four million. Fetal development time is about seven months. To spread seeds, rafflesia also uses others, in this case wild animals (elephants, pigs), which crush the plant with their limbs, to which the seeds stick, as well as insects and small mammals.

Rafflesia was first discovered in the rain forests of southwestern Sumatra by a local guide working with doctor and naturalist Joseph Arnold on an expedition in 1818, and was named after the man who led the expedition, Thomas Stamford Raffles (who later became famous as the founder Singapore). The first plant species that came across was about a meter in diameter and weighed 6 kg, it was named Rafflesia Arnold. Later, Rafflesia was found on the Malacca Peninsula, the islands of Java, Kalimantan, and the Philippines. But due to the fact that the area of ​​tropical forests is now rapidly declining due to massive cuttings for plantations, all types of rafflesia are under threat of complete destruction.

In addition, the plant has long been used by local residents as a medicinal plant; extract from rafflesia buds was used to restore the figure of women after childbirth, and the flowers were used to enhance sexual function in men. At the moment, Rafflesia Arnold is the widest flower on Earth. Although its close competitor is Amorphophallus titanica, which has the tallest inflorescence and is close in width to Rafflesia.

Rafflesia is a giant flower, the largest in the whole world. The plant gained its fame not only due to its enormous size, but also due to the specific putrefactive aroma that it spreads around itself. Due to this, the flower received an additional name - dead lotus.

History of the discovery of rafflesia

Rafflesia was officially discovered in 1818. The flower was found in the tropics of Indonesia, on the island of Sumatra. The expedition that discovered the plant was led by Sir S. Raffles. The first to see was the guide, assistant naturalist D. Arnold. The specimen that was found was striking in its enormous size. Moreover, the flower did not have a stem or roots. The found plant received its name from the names of the expedition leader and naturalist doctor.

Areole distribution

Rafflesia has more than thirty different species. This plant is found only in Southeast Asia. The rafflesia arnoldia flower grows only in Kalimantan. All other species are found in Java, the Philippines and Malacca. Giant flowers grow only in the jungle, but due to their massive deforestation, plants may soon completely disappear from our planet.

Description of the flower

The only part of the plant that is visible is the flower. It grows through the bark. The flower grows from 60 to 100 centimeters in diameter, weighing up to eight kilograms. The color is brownish-reddish, with large white spots. The size of the flowers depends on the type of plant.

For example, the weight of Rafflesia Arnoldi can be up to ten kilograms, and the diameter of the opened bud can be up to a meter. In Patma it is much smaller - only thirty centimeters. The diameter of the flowers of Rafflesia rhizantes and sapria ranges from 10-20 cm.

Rafflesia is a flower that has five fleshy petals, each three centimeters thick, which are attached to a cup-shaped core. In its center there is a column (or column), expanding upward. There is a disk covered with spikes.

Flower propagation

Rafflesia has fruits that resemble huge berries, which contain many seeds (up to four million). Of course, they are inedible and easy to get poisoned by. The plant cannot reproduce on its own. Insects and animals help him. They step on the fruits and spread the seeds throughout the jungle. Insects are attracted to the bright color and smell. When moving, their legs fall into the furrow, and the seeds are glued with sticky pollen. But even out of a million spores, only dozens germinate.

Bloom

The victims of the plant are mainly trees whose stems or roots are damaged. In this case, no harm is done to them. Rafflesia is a giant flower, but grows slowly. The place to which the plant is attached begins to swell after a year. This period can be up to eighteen months. A full bud appears in approximately 2-3 years.

Rafflesia is pollinated mainly by flies. They are attracted by the putrid smell emanating from the flower. The plant itself lives a long time. The bud can take three years to ripen, and several more months are required for the flower to open. Its life after the bud opens lasts only a few days. Then the flower begins to gradually rot, turning into a black, shapeless mass.

After the process is completed, a new ovary is formed. It develops over seven months. Then, at the site of the ovary, a small fruit appears, looking like a huge berry. It contains very small seeds the size of a poppy seed.

Uses of rafflesia

The rafflesia flower, a photo of which is in this article, is used in folk medicine. The plant is used for recovery after childbirth. Flowers are also used as an aphrodisiac. The properties that are attributed to it do not have scientific confirmation.

Residents of the islands of the Philippines and Indonesia are convinced that rafflesia (giant flower) helps restore potency. After childbirth, women make an extract from the buds of the plant to regain a slim figure. This same remedy has long been used by aborigines as a natural hemostatic drug.

In Malaysia there is a park-reserve where rafflesia is specially grown. And in many varieties. To constantly attract tourists, the timing of the opening of rafflesia buds is selected so that at the height of the season you can admire the magnificent giant flower. Of course, this increases the interest of tourists in this country.

Rafflesia has a competitor - Amorphophallus titanica. It has the tallest inflorescence. The plant emits an unpleasant odor, and the width of the flowers is as close as possible to the size of rafflesia.

Rafflesia- this is the smallest representative among the flowers of giants, such as and. But still, the dimensions of the flower are impressive: weight up to 7 kg and up to 100 cm in diameter.

Flower corpse lily(as the plant is called in its homeland - on the Indonesian island of Sumatra) looks very impressive: a huge inflorescence of a red-burning color, with equally large fleshy petals with white convex inclusions. However, it is better to admire this beauty from a distance, since Rafflesia emits the smell of decomposing meat, i.e. fell. No matter how strange it may sound, this terrible aroma “plays into the hands” of the giant flower - dung flies and some other insects flock to it. They pollinate the corpse lily.

Rafflesia is a rare plant; they can only be found on the islands of the Indonesian and Philippine archipelagos (the islands of Sumatra, Java, Malacca, Kalimantan and the Philippines). The largest and at the same time the most famous variety of rafflesia is Arnoldi, slightly less common are rafflesia Patma And Thuan Mude.

Rafflesia blooms for only 3-4 days, and if during this time it does not have time to pollinate, the entire plant will die. And if the flies do come to the “sweet” aroma, then Rafflesia forms an unusual hard fruit with hundreds of thousands of small seeds inside.

Further reproduction is even more interesting. The rafflesia fruit is very hard and does not open on its own, so in order for the seeds to spread throughout the forest, the flower requires the help of some large animal, for example an elephant. It sounds a little incomprehensible, but in fact everything is simple - large animals crush the fruits of rafflesia and spread the seeds of the miracle flower on their paws or hooves.