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This odd plant stumped taxonomists for years. A desert plant found in South Africa, the thick welwitschia mirabilis generally possesses only two leaves, but these leaves curl and tangle as the plant grows (it often lives over 1,000 years) and becomes a jumbled, tough mass spanning 6 feet or more.
Winning no awards as an anniversary bouquet, this remarkable - or remarkably ugly - flower nevertheless captivates plenty of folks. The rafflesia is a parasitic plant with a flesh-like bloom the size of an armchair and a stench that’s unmissable if you’re even remotely close. The smell is so bad, in fact, that it’s often called the corpse flower or meat flower. (The Titan Arum, another stinky flower, is also called the corpse flower, but these two plants should not be confused.)
This incredibly popular house plant is virtually extinct in the wild due to habitat destruction and the botanical equivalent of poaching. Its sap is poisonous, but it does make an attractive yard ornament. Unfortunately humans have not balanced their desire to grow the baseball plant in their gardens with the need to preserve natural populations of the plant.
The black bat flower, or tacca chantrieri, is exceptionally rare and quite beautiful. The flowers can reach over 12″ in diameter and each bloom typically has many “whiskers” that can grow to two feet or more in length.
The rare and beautiful green jade flower is distinct for its blue-green petals and navy-purple center. It looks like a fuschia plant on an acid trip
Originally posted by CosmicEgg
Ah. Delicate flowers. Shy violets, they are. heh
They'd make one helluva flower arrangement, wouldn't they? Especially the one(s) that smell like sh*t or carrion. MMMMMmmmmmMMMMMM!! Nice for that romantic dinner for two....ogres.
Originally posted by mel1962
Cool Stuff, looks like its right out of a sci-fi movie!
Is there anything unusually about there genetics
photo is from Two Tarn Lake, on our circuit around the peak. Point John is reflected in the water. The strange plant life is one of the most fascinating aspects of this trip. These are ostrich plume lobelia.
A fiery Venezuelan plant that is the most popular Bromeliad in Europe. With its striking red and yellow flower spike its easy to see why. For further information about these plants visit the Bromeliad Society International website.
This display of exotic insect-eating plants won Hampshire Carnivorous Plants another RHS gold medal and the coveted Tudor Rose Award in the floral marquee section.