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History of UW-Madison's Titan ArumThe University of Wisconsin-Madison's Titan Arum was grown from seed collected by James Symon and Wilbert Hetterscheid in Sumatra in 1993. The photos below were supplied by Wilbert Hettersheid. 
Sumatran villagers stand next to the fruiting stalk of a Titan Arum. This plant was located some 20 miles north of Sipirok, West Sumata Province, in cut-over rainforest, in the "backyard" of a small village. One of these berries yielded the seed from which UW-Madison's Titan plant was grown. The giant fruiting plant above was stripped of all its seeds, which were then packed and sent to several researchers who had requested a seed batch to study the growth of the Titan Arum. This great number of seed batches is the source of many flowering plants presently in the U.S. 
Wilbert Hetterscheid, right, is shown here in Sumatra in 1993 next to David Attenborough, who starred in the BBC series "Private Life of Plants. Both Hetterscheid and Attenborough joined Jim Symon on this expedition to study Amorphophallus species in Indonesia. Seeds were dispersed to a number of U.S. botanists, including some to Mark Dimmitt from Arizona. Two seedlings were given to UW-Madison botany researcher Tom Gibson. (The plant in the above photo is Amorphophallus gigas, a close relative to A. titanum). 
Hetterscheid opens a Titan Arum flower in a Sumatran rainforest. 
Hetterscheid, left, and Symon in Sumatra. 
Hetterscheid stands next to a Titan Arum leaf. |
Visitors gather to view the 98-inch-tall Titan
Arum nicknamed "Big Bucky," which bloomed
June 9, 2005. 
Illustration: Kandis Elliot This illustration shows Titan Arum in bud, left, and full bloom, center. At the base of the spadix (the fleshy central column) are over a thousand tiny flowers. If pollinated, these flowers will produce a huge ball of bright red berries, right. |
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File last updated: July 20, 2005 |