The worlds tallest flower It stand as tall as a two story house. It has a long spike of flowers with more than 8,000 individual blooms and it is found in a few isolated parts of the remote high Andes. The plant is named Puya Raimondii, commonly referred to as "Puya". Dung the 1800's a botanist named Raimondii discovered this unique plant and since then only a dozen other known locations have been found. The "Puya" is found on mountainsides usually above 12,000 feet and at such an altitude the only other vegetation is a course grass and a few low shrubs. The local native population believe that if they see the plant in bloom they will be blessed with good fortune. Once the send germinates it takes years to develop into a large crown of long, prickly leaves about 15 feet high, out of which the huge flower-covered spike grows fairly quickly. No-one knows quite how long it takes from germination to the flowering, but it is thought that 150 years is about average, and the plant flowers only once before dying. In some cases the short trunk is cut into slabs to make seats, but usually they are left where they provide an infrequent supply of nectar for rare hummingbirds. A humming-bird prepares to settle on the puya plant.
Photo measures 8 x 10.25 inches.
Photo is dated --none.
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