Flowers are natural wonders found in nature. They bloom beautifully and releases fragrant scents that captivate our spirits, making it the reason why we adore flowers. Since there are multitude kinds of flowers, do you know what the biggest flower in the world is? The biggest flower discovered is the Rafflesia arnoldii. This flower is rarely found and can only be appreciated in Southeast Asian rainforest like Bengkulu, Sumatra Island, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.
The biggest flower that flourished in few rainforest belongs to the genus Rafflesia, which is known to bear large-sized individual flowers but comes with super undesirable scent. The scent of this flower is comparable to that of rotten meat, hence it is also known as the “corpse flower”.
Rafflesia grows as a parasite on Tetrastigma vine and this means it does not have any roots, leaves or stems and does not even have chlorophyll. What we can only see is the flower itself when it is ready for reproduction but despite of the absence of some plant properties, this flower is still considered as a vascular plant.
Since this flower is a parasite, it gets nutrients and water from host cells that engirds its tissues. It also possesses distinct properties and its massiveness is one of the characters that make this flower unique. The flower blooms with reddish-brown color and emits that rotten smell which is distinct from this flower. When measuring the diameter of Rafflesia, it can reach three feet across and weighs heavily, up to eleven kilograms, making it proportionate to its size.
Behind the foul smell of this flower, there goes the fact that the scent is mainly used to attract insects like flies for pollination purposes. The flowers are only recognized once it buds, as a sign that it is already prepared to reproduce. But this event takes place approximately for a year so we just have to wait for this long time to witness the final bloom of Rafflesias. Ironically, the flowers only survive for a few days despite of its long-awaited time to fully bloom.
Rafflesias are unisexual and successful pollination takes place when male and female flowers are proximate to each other, but this is often rare thus making reproduction a bit difficult. Since reproduction is rare, the world’s biggest flower is considered to be endangered and this calls for us to preserve the remaining species found in the rainforest.
When we find Rafflesias, we must not pluck or mutilate them as a way to preserve the world’s biggest flower. It would then be so rewarding if future generations would still be able to witness the beauty of Rafflesias despite of its undesirable rotten smell.