Dracunculus vurgaris

[Hal or Nancy Robinson]

I was giving a program and someone said that they had a weird plant that
they did not know the name for so I said I would come and id the plant
when it bloomed.  The bloom came and so did I.  Of course. I knew the
plant as soon as I saw the bloom.  I told them the little black beetles
were pollinating the bloom becausethe beetles thought it was carrion.
Up until then, the owners had never smelled the flower.  I was told the
next year that they had never been able to enjoy the bloom since.
Happiness is not knowing.
Nancy Robinson  east Tennessee zone 6b