Giant calla lily breaks world record at Metz Botanical Garden

A new giant arum lily began to bloom on Monday evening in the Metz Botanical Garden, the field reported on Tuesday morning. At 3 meters 21 centimeters tall, the plant is the largest giant arum lily in the world.

The previous record was 3 meters and 10 centimeters, held by a plant in Guildford, USA since 2010. The first world record in the Guinness Book of World Records was a 3 meter and 6 centimeter chalice from the Bonn Botanical Garden (2003).

In 2008, the first giant calla lily bloomed at the Metz Botanical Garden. Since then, twenty calyxes have bloomed. The specimen that appears now was sown in the Ghent Botanical Garden in 2005 and came to Metz in 2014. Last week, another specimen (2 meters 17 centimeters) bloomed at the Botanical Garden.

The giant arum is known for its characteristic smell of rotting flesh. Therefore, the plant is also called the “stinking flower”. The scientific name of the calyx, Amorphophallus giganteusliterally means “deformed penis”, which led to the second nickname “penis flower”.

The giant arum only blooms for 48 to 72 hours. It is still important to allow as many people as possible to have the opportunity to enjoy this flower. Metz Botanical Garden Open until 9pm on Tuesday, August 13 and Wednesday, August 14.