Join Marcelo Sellaro as he explores the fascinating world of the
titan arum. The titan arum is not the sort of plant you can be
neutral about. It is curious, weird, rather obscene, revolting
and even terrifying. Scientifically known as Amorphophallus
titanum, it is by no means easy to tell that it belongs to the
Araceae family, which includes the ‘Swiss Cheese Plant’
(Monstera deliciosa) with its unmistakeable foliage, the
virginal ‘White Arum’ or ‘Calla Lilly’ (Zantedeschia
aethiopica), the ‘Flamingo Flower’ (Anthurium andraeanum), and
the ‘European Arum’ or ‘Lords-and-Ladies’ (Arum maculatum and A.
italicum). The flower of Amorphophallus titanum is indeed very
odd. It consists of a single bract (modified leaf) called a
spathe, which provides cover for a central flower-bearing
protuberance, the spadix. This floral peculiarity is technically
an inflorescence, not a flower; the real flowers being tiny and
protected at the base of the spathe. The shape of this
inflorescence has inescapable sexual connotations b