Apr 13, 2025
Flowers tend to be appreciated for their beauty and scent, but not all flowers smell nice. Some flowers have a stench so bad that they give off smells akin to rotting flesh or decaying materials to attract pollinators. Here we list some of them:
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One of the smelliest flowers in the world, the Titan Arum has a stench reminiscent of rotting flesh. Found on Sumatra, the flower is rare but attracts attention to its enormous size and pungent smell.
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Another corpse-smelling giant, Rafflesia Arnoldii is a leafless, stemless parasitic flower. Its massive red flowers lure carrion flies with their stench, reminiscent of putrid, decomposing flesh.
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Natively from Africa, this oddball underground plant has a fecal odor to attract dung beetles for pollination.With its fleshy, tentacle-like shape, it is one of the oddest plants on the planet.
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Although its pods are utilized in the production of food, the carob tree blossoms have a potent, off-putting smell like sweaty socks or rotten milk.This is all done to attract certain pollinators.
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This orchid is as exotic-looking as it can be, yet it emits a foul, moldy smell similar to rotting flesh. From New Guinea, it has flies as its primary pollinators.
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Also known as "Voodoo Lily," this vibrant purple flower gives off an intense, stinky odor comparable to rotting flesh. It attracts flies as pollinators, but, thank goodness, the smell only lasts a day.
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This star-shaped cactus, native to South Africa, copies the odor of rotting animals to draw flies. Though it smells terrible, on occasion, it is cultivated as an ornamental flower.
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As the name indicates, this plant gives off a skunk-like smell. Native to North America, it grows on swamps and employs its putrid aroma to draw scavenger insects.
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