RANAU, March 15 — The Rafflesia flower takes about five years to bloom but only lasts five to seven days after it does.
Sabah Parks employee Abidin Giking, who has been tasked with caring for these flowers in Poring, the 1.3-hectare Rafflesia Garden, said it takes four years for the plant to grow from seed to bud but another 12 to 15 months for it to start flowering.
Abidin, who has been working at the garden for the past 16 years, said only Rafflesia Keithii is found there. This species was planted in 2005 via four methods, namely by budding, seedlings, cuttings as well as transplanting.
“All methods of planting were successful, and the Rafflesia Keithii flowers that are growing now are the result of the 78-centimetre seed (seedling) method which grows in just five to seven days.
“However, the blooming process depends on the weather… In hot weather, the flowers will wilt in three days but can last for a week in humid conditions,” Abidin told Bernama when met at the Poring Hot Springs substation here recently.
Abidin said the Rafflesia flower petals are highly sensitive to human touch and turn black and die within hours of being touched. The flowers will also emit a foul odour which attracts insects such as flies to sit on them and become pollinating agents.
He also provides information regarding Rafflesia’s growth process to visitors and said that the gender of the species can also be known six months after the flower dies.
He said the female species possess a disc located under the flower which has an ovary that stores thousands of seeds that will be food for animals such as rats and squirrels.
“These animals will carry the Rafflesia seeds to other ‘host’ areas before the seeds germinate into buds,” he said.
Abidin said the area was first opened to visitors, with an entrance fee of RM10 per person, in 2013. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, an estimated over 1,000 visitors came to view the Rafflesia flower.
One visitor, Toh Siew Har, 55, said she had the privilege to see the flower when touring Sabah although it was not in the itinerary.
“This is the first time I have seen the Rafflesia and got a detailed explanation (from Abidin) about the flower,” said Toh who is from Sungai Petani, Kedah.
She added that she previously only knew about the flower through reading material and seeing photographs of it.
Another visitor from Sungai Petani, Tan Say Lee, 55, said he would share his experience with his friends in the Peninsula so that they could also come (to Sabah) and see for themselves the Rafflesia and the beauty of the area.
Sources: BERNAMA