My Smelly Valentine
The date was Feb. 13, 2026. SFSU’s corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanium) bloomed, drawing nearly 500 people to the SFSU greenhouse behind Hensill and Thornton halls. The event only lasted 24 to 48 hours and only happens every few years. SFSU’s plant (affectionately named Baby Bok Choy) started showing signs of bloom 24 days earlier, so Greenhouse Coordinator Elliot Levin kept a close eye on it and provided the community with updates via the greenhouse Instagram.
“The event went well. People were interested and liked the greenhouse. They left happy. We had very nice line flow. I’ve actually never seen one of these [corpse flowers bloom] because I refuse to wait in line for an hour, so I didn’t want people to wait for too long,” Levin says, describing the exciting weekend. At larger organizations, blooming corpse flowers attract thousands of people.
Amorphophallus titanium is the largest and is most commonly associated with the corpse flower moniker that draws big crowds. The bloom can grow up to 10 feet tall and smells like rotting flesh. Levin reveals that the greenhouse actually has 10 plants from the Amorphophallus species, each ranging in size and smell. One smells like natural gas and caused Levin to momentarily think there was a gas leak.
Baby Bok Choy is only one of 800 to 1,000 plants in the greenhouse’s collection, which also includes other rare and unique species. Throughout the year, the greenhouse is used by Biology classes, faculty and student researchers and other community members, fostering a community of plant enthusiasts on and off campus. The greenhouse often works with other greenhouses, gardens, universities and organizations.
Greenhouse volunteer Juan Alas, a History major, captured beautiful photography of Baby Bok Choy, building the buzz about the bloom.
“It was my first time bringing out the camera and photographing people [at an event],” he says. “Seeing their reaction, smelling it and seeing how excited they were was really interesting.”
Alas’ involvement with the greenhouse happened by chance. He was taking photos outside of the greenhouse when Levin saw him and invited him to take photos inside and become a greenhouse volunteer. Now Alas is there every week taking photos.
“Come to the greenhouse!” Alas says. “Elliot is an encyclopedia, and I don’t think anybody realizes it. There’s stuff here from all over the planet, and he knows all about it. Come take a look.”
