SEATTLE (AP) — The University of Washington Biology department says its corpse flower opened overnight in a rare blooming accompanied by an awful smell.
The department said on its Facebook page that the flower was fully opened after midnight and the smell was peaking. About 550 people visited the Botany greenhouse Wednesday night in waves of nausea.
The flower attracts pollinating insects by smelling like rotting meat when it blooms.
Greenhouse manager Doug Ewing and his associates coaxed the flower into bloom after nearly three years of dormancy.
