One of the rare — and pungent — corpse flowers at Cal State Long Beach is set to bloom. The phenomenon could take place as early as Saturday, June 14, said the university’s botanical curator.

The flowering plant typically takes seven to 15 years to bloom — though this one has so far had a quicker cycle, with this being its third bloom since 2019 — and only stays open for 24 to 48 hours. But it’s most fascinating trait is the smell it emits once open — better described as a stench. The odor is about what you’d expect from something called a corpse flower.

The biological sciences department, within the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, acquired the seedlings in 2009. The species name of the flowering plant, which is native to Sumatra, is “Amorphophallus titanum.” Its blooming illustrates the results of millions of years of gradual, specific evolution to achieve reproductive success, university officials said.

The corpse flower that is getting ready to bloom is named “Phil,” in memory of the late Philip Baker, professor emeritus of plant systematics in the college’s botany program.

“It’s always exciting because, unlike most of my other plants, which are very predictable (and) I know exactly when they’re going to bloom,” Brian Thorson, botanical curator and botany technician for the campus, said on Friday, “you never know with this species.”

The species bears the largest inflorescence – flower stalk – known in the plant kingdom, Thorson said. It is a carrion flower, a reference to its adaptation to mimic decomposing flesh. Its colors and markings look like flesh and the aroma mimics the stench of decomposition.

Knowing when the flowering plant is about to bloom happens in stages, Thorson said. The first sign is the stalk reaches the proper height — as of Friday morning, Phil was nearly 4.5 feet — and then the spathe changes colors, from green to maroon, before opening up. When the spathe opens, it looks like a flower petal — but it’s actually a modified leaf.

“It’s very exciting when I check and see something emerging out of dormancy,” Thorson said, “and by now, because I’ve seen a number of them, I can distinguish a leaf from an inflorescence almost immediately.”

This is Phil’s third bloom. It first bloomed in 2019 and then again in 2021. Phil’s counterpart, Laura – named after former Dean Laura Kingsford – bloomed in 2015.

Corpse flowers tend to draw thousands of visitors when they bloom, Thorson said. People being able to view the rare flowering plants for free makes CSULB just as special, he added, but donations to continue the work the department does are always appreciated.

The College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics will publish updates on Phil on its website and on social media. Community members and botany enthusiasts will have the opportunity to see the corpse flower on display once it is in bloom at the Hall of Science at the university sometime over the weekend or the week of Monday, June 16.