There's more good news--our Titan has a pollen donor! Stephan F. Austin State University Mast Arboretum in Texas has graciously offered some of the pollen from "Jack", their Titan Arum just coming into bloom. If the timing is right, "Jack" will flower and release his pollen in the next few days allowing enough time to ship the pollen and have it on hand when our Titan blooms.

I'd like to acknowledge Melissa Shepherd, our greenhouse grower who supports Disney's Animal Kingdom's Horticulture. For the past two years, Melissa has been "Momma" to the Titans as well as maintained our rare plant and orchid production. A graduate of The Ohio State University, Melissa's focus on plant nutrition has pushed the Titans' growth to their optimum potential. In the picture above, Melissa is standing by the other plants in the WDW collection. The bulb weight upon repotting for these starting in the foreground was : 90 lbs. (41 kg) (this is the one that could still be a flower although is starting to look more like a leaf), 35 lbs. (16 kg), and 45 lbs. (21 kg). The plant currently on show weighed 40 lbs. (18 kg) upon replanting.

I also want to acknowledge Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden for allowing us to use the graphic of the progressive development of the Titan flower pictured below. The graphic was created by Craig Allen while at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.

DID YOU KNOW: When the Titan Arum first bloomed at the Huntington Botanical Garden, 76,000 people turned out to view the plant before and during the flowering!