Franklin Park Zoo expects rare corpse flower to bloom sometime Sunday

By Wesley Lowery, Globe Correspondent

The blooming has begun.

The first leaves opened on Amorphophallus titanum, a rare 4-foot-tall, 200-pound flower, around 4 p.m. Saturday at the Franklin Park Zoo and it is expected to fully bloom sometime Sunday, according to a representative for the zoo.

The flower, which originates in Western Indonesia, is known as the “corpse flower,” due to the strong odor it emits in order to attract beetles and flies. The smell has been compared to rotting flesh.

The plant, named Morticia, will be the second of two corpse flowers to bloom at the Franklin Park Zoo. The flowers typically last two days and then the plant does not bloom again for 15 years.

The zoo has extended its hours for the public to see the flower free of charge. The zoo’s greenhouse will be open from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. each day the flower is in bloom for viewing. It will close at 9:30 and reopen at 10 a.m.

The flower could be as large as 5 feet wide once in full bloom.