Rafflesia - it is this creation of nature that bears the proud title of "the largest flower in the world." True, this plant surprises not only with its size, but also with its other qualities, which have little to do with ordinary ideas about flowers. After all, the largest flower is a fetid, bright red plant, sometimes exceeding human growth. By the way, because of the disgusting smell, rafflesia is often called cadaveric lily. Although the locals call this plant "lotus flower" ("bunga patma"). You can see it in the tropical forests of Indonesia (Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan) and the Philippines.
The largest flower in the world got its name in honor of officer T. Raffles and botanist D. Arnold. The discovery was made on the island of Sumatra. The mentioned discoverers measured the flower, gave it a name and a scientific description.
Surprisingly, the largest flower in the world is not able to independently synthesize part of the necessary organic and mineral substances. Therefore, the named plant, despite its size, parasitizes on vines. To do this, it produces special threads that penetrate the tissue of vines, without causing them the slightest harm. The named flower has no roots and green leaves.
Rafflesia growth is not too fast. The bark of the plant, under which the development of the seed of the parasite flower takes place, swells after 1.5 years, and after 9 months a red flower blooms. Rafflesia consists of 5 thick petals of
brick-red color with bright white growths resembling warts. From afar, the described flower looks like a giant fly agaric. True, it blooms only 4 days. In appearance, rafflesia resembles rotting meat and has the same cadaverous smell. Thus, the world's largest flower can be sniffed faster than seen. After a flowering period, rafflesia decomposes over several weeks and soon turns into a black shapeless mass. If pollen enters the female flower, then the development of the fetus begins, in which there are thousands of seeds.
It is with the unusual smell that rafflesia attracts flies pollinating this flower. Getting on a flower disk, flies flounder in it, gradually falling through lower and lower. In the annular groove, thin hairs direct the flies to the stamens that sprinkle sticky pollen on their backs. Burdened by the burden, insects are sent to the female flowers, fertilizing their ovules. But after ripening, the plant needs the help of a large animal that can crush the fruit and transfer the seeds of rafflesia to another place. It is worth noting that a blossoming
largest flower in the world in diameter can be equal to 1 m and weigh about 8 kg. In addition, rafflesia has the widest inflorescence.
At the moment, scientists distinguish 12 types of rafflesia. The most famous among them are Rafflesia Tuan Muda and Rafflesia Arnoldi. The named species have the largest flowers. Even rafflesia of sapria in diameter reaches 15-20 cm. It is interesting that the Indonesians claim that the extract from the kidneys of the named plant contributes to the restoration of the figure after childbirth. As for scientists, they recognize that the life of this unique flower has not yet been fully studied.