Review of the best according to the editorial board. On the selection criteria. This material is subjective, does not constitute advertising and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.
Flowers are one of the most amazing and beautiful representatives of the vast plant kingdom. From ancient times to the present day, they play an important role in human culture. Many unique varieties have been bred by talented botanists, but none of them can compare in originality with the extraordinary and bizarre flowers presented in our selection. These plants stand out from others for their shape, size or aroma.
The most unusual flowers on Earth that everyone should see
| Nomination | a place | name | rating |
| The most unusual flowers on Earth | 1 | Titan Arum | 5.0 |
| 2 | Rafflesia Arnold | 4.9 | |
| 3 | Nepentes Attenborough | 4.8 | |
| 4 | Nut lotus | 4.7 | |
| 5 | Hooker's lips | 4.6 | |
| 6 | Jade vine | 4.5 | |
| 7 | Orchis monkey | 4.4 | |
| 8 | Bee orchid | 4.3 | |
| 9 | Snapdragon achene | 4.2 | |
| 10 | Takka Shantrye | 4.1 |
Titan Arum
Rating: 5.0
Titan Arum or Amorphophallus Titanic is one of the largest flowers in the world, its inflorescence usually reaches two and a half, and in rare cases even three meters in height. In this case, the weight of the plant together with the tuber can be about 75 kilograms. In addition to its impressive size, the giant is also known for its aroma, for which it received the eloquent name “cadaveric flower” in its homeland. The smell of rotting meat it gives off is intolerable to the human sense of smell, but it attracts some species of flies and carrion beetles. It is thanks to these insects that the pollination of the flower occurs in natural conditions. Titan Arum is an endemic species that grows only in the tropical jungles of Java and Sumatra, although today it is extremely rare in the wild. However, you can admire it in one of the large botanical gardens. The plant blooms about once every ten years, fully opening for only a few days, and it spends most of its life cycle in a kind of hibernation.
Rafflesia Arnold
Rating: 4.9
This type of Rafflesia got its name in honor of an English naturalist named Joseph Arnold, who took part in a research expedition to the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Prior to this, the flower was known among the local population as “bunga patma”. Its habitat is very small: in addition to Sumatra, it is also found on the island of Kalimantan (Borneo). The plant blooms only for a few days, at this time huge red-brown flowers with a diameter of up to one meter bloom, which makes Rafflesia Arnold the widest flower on the planet. Each flower has five fleshy, rounded petals about three centimeters thick. The weight of one specimen of Rafflesia can reach 11 kilograms. Like the previous plant, it attracts insects pollinating it with the help of a fetid “cadaveric” smell, and ripe seeds are usually carried by animals that have stepped on the fruit. The leaves and stem of the flower are absent, since it is a parasite and lives off the Tetrastigma vines, without resorting to photosynthesis.
Nepentes Attenborough
Rating: 4.8
Nepentes Attenborough is an endemic species of the Philippine island of Palawan that grows on the slopes of Mount Victoria. The plant was first discovered only recently, in 2000, when Christian missionaries found it during an attempt to climb the mountain. Biologists immediately became interested in their stories about unusual jug-shaped flowers, but an expedition with the aim of a detailed study of the species was organized only seven years later. The plant reaches one and a half meters in height, its jug is about 25 centimeters long and 12 centimeters wide serves as a trap. Nepetnes Attenborough is the largest of the carnivorous flowers, capable of capturing and digesting not only insects, but even rodents such as mice. Due to the slippery inner walls of the jug, the victim cannot get out and as a result is slowly digested in the digestive fluid. The name Attenborough was given to the plant in honor of naturalist and wildlife TV host David Attenborough.
Nut lotus
Rating: 4.7
Nucifera flowers are found in many tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, in the northeast of the Australian continent, as well as in some regions of Russia. It is one of the oldest plants on Earth, and archaeologists have discovered lotus fossils in the sediments of the Late Cretaceous period. The species has successfully survived to this day, not least due to its unique ability to long-term preservation of germination – there are cases when its seeds germinated hundreds of years after collection. A perennial aquatic plant can be seen in stagnant bodies of water and slow flowing rivers. The leaves of the nut-bearing lotus are floating, shield-like, up to 70 centimeters in size. The diameter of the bright pink flowers rising above the water surface is 25-30 centimeters. But the most interesting part of the lotus is the fruit in the form of a box of reverse conical shape with seeds-nuts inside. Each of them is in a separate cell, in total the box contains up to twenty seeds.
Hooker's lips
Rating: 4.6
The plant with the scientific name Psychotria Elata grows in the forests of Costa Rica, and is occasionally found in other countries of South America: Panama, Ecuador and Colombia. The amazing flower is distinguished by the shape of its bracts, resembling bright red lips stretched out for a kiss. This morphological structure is due to the need to attract the attention of potential pollinators – butterflies and hummingbirds. Today the plant is under the threat of complete extinction due to uncontrolled deforestation in Latin America.
Jade vine
Rating: 4.5
The plant species Strongylodon macrobotrys belongs to the legume family, distributed in the rainforests of the Philippine Islands, southeast Asia, Africa and the island of Madagascar. It was first discovered by European scientists during a 1936 research expedition to the Philippines. The jade vine grows with a stem, the length of which can reach 20 meters, large foliage and lush clusters of inflorescences about 100 centimeters long are formed on it. In each of the inflorescences there are about a hundred small flowers with an amazing green-blue color. Their color resembles a sea wave or a gemstone jade, to which the plant itself owes its name. The vine also has one more unusual property – it is capable of slightly luminescent in the evening twilight, thereby attracting bats, which are its main pollinators. The plant is often cultivated for ornamental purposes, but outside the tropics, it only took root well in the London Botanic Gardens.
Orchis monkey
Rating: 4.4
The monkey orchis is a perennial herbaceous flower that belongs to the orchid family. The plant has a vast habitat: from some countries of North Africa and Western Europe to Iran and the Caucasus. In Russia, this species also grows on the territory of the Crimean Peninsula. The light-loving plant prefers forest glades and shrubby areas, takes root well in mountainous areas at altitudes up to 1500 meters above sea level. The height of the orchis is about 50 centimeters, the large inflorescence is formed from a cluster of large flowers. The central petals resemble in shape the miniature body of a monkey with long limbs and a small tail, thanks to which the plant received this name. During the flowering period, the orchis exudes a sweetish aroma, reminiscent of the smell of an orange.
Bee orchid
Rating: 4.3
Of all the existing ways to attract the attention of pollinating insects, this plant species uses the most original. The flower of such an orchid from the genus of Ophys is devoid of nectar, but in its shape and color it exactly imitates a female bee. Moreover, in addition to the similarity in appearance, it emits an aroma similar to female bee sex hormones. As a result, a drone flying by is completely deceived and rushes to the “female”, guided by the reproductive instinct. And by the time the illusion is revealed, he is already covered with pollen, which he will soon refer to the same flower, again without noticing the trick, and thereby cross-pollinate the orchid. Plants are found in Armenia, Western Europe, in areas near the Mediterranean and Black Seas.
Snapdragon achene
Rating: 4.2
Antirrium, known as snapdragon, is a plant from the plantain family. Distributed mainly in North America, but was introduced to Russia, where it is widely used for decorative purposes. The name of the flower probably comes from ancient Greek mythology. According to legend, after the victory of Hercules over the giant Nemean lion, the goddess Flora presented him with antirrium. Depending on the variety, the plant can have a height of 15 centimeters to one meter. Its bright, beautiful flowers are used in landscape design, decorating flower beds, gardens, balconies and terraces with them. And when the snapdragon flower dies, an eerie feature is revealed – in its dry form, its outlines are extremely similar to a human skull.
Takka Shantrye
Rating: 4.1
The appearance of the Takka Chantrye flower resembles a bat, for which it was nicknamed the Chinese mouse flower. This fantastic plant is found mainly in the countries of Southeast Asia. It grows in tropical forests, near the sea coast and similar places with rich soil and high atmospheric humidity. The bizarre and slightly eerie form of gothic black flowers up to 30 centimeters in diameter is complemented by long tendrils hanging down. In the wild, Takka Chantrye is pollinated with the help of flies that flock to the aroma of spoiled meat almost indistinguishable to humans.
Attention! This rating is subjective and does not constitute an advertisement and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.
