10 Rarest Flowers In The World

Mixi September 23, 2021 | 22:36

There are thousands of flowers in the world, yet some flowers are so rare, bloom in specific seasons, or even after decades. Check out right below the 10 rarest flowers in the world!

Rarest flowers. Photo: Mixi

Flowers are great for decorating. They’re also a great way of saying thanks or expressing your love for someone. In fact, flowers can symbolize many feelings and emotions. Some flowers have practical uses and can be used to make anything from medicines to air purifiers. There are around four hundred thousand different species of flowering plants in the world. There are even many more that are yet to be discovered and documented. Hence, preparing a list of the world's rarest flowers is not an easy task. However, based on popular opinion, here are the 10 rarest flowers in the world. Some of them bloom once in a blue moon while others are almost extinct in the wild.

List of 10 Rarest Flowers in the World

1. Cape Sundew

2. Corpse Flower

3. Middlemist red

4. Erythrina Schliebenii

5. Flame Lily

6. Ghost Orchid

7. Jade Vine

8. Franklin Tree Flower

9. Chocolate Cosmos

10. Youtan Poluo

Which are the Rarest Flowers in the World?

1. Cape Sundew

Photo: Pixels

Drosera capensis, commonly referred to as Cape sundew, is a carnivorous plant native to South Africa. The rosette-forming plant easily grows in nature due to the vast amount of seeds it produces. Cape sundew produces leaves that are covered in tentacles. These brightly covered tentacles secrete sticky mucilage used to trap arthropods. When insects become trapped, the leaves roll towards the center of the plant. Cape sundew can be propagated via seed, root cuttings or leaf cuttings. It grows well in open sunny areas and is among one of the easiest carnivorous plants to grow indoors.

2. Corpse Flower

Photo: Toronto Star

The corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanum) can stand up to twelve feet tall. It grows indigenously in the rainforests of Indonesia. In case you were wondering why this rare species is called the corpse flower, it is because of the odor it emits when in bloom, which can smell like (you guessed it) a rotting corpse. The strong smell of the corpse flower serves to attract pollinators.

3. Middlemist red

Photo: WallsDesk.com

The stunningly beautiful middle mist red is the rarest flower in the world. Surprisingly, only two examples of this flower are left in the world, in the New Zealand garden and in the greenhouse garden of the United Kingdom. It was John Middlemist, a nurseryman who brought this amazing plant from China to the UK in 1804.

After that, the Middlemist flower gets completely washed out from China and surprisingly gets cultivated again in the gardens of London. Middlemist looks like a rose in its deep pink color. There is also longtime research undergoing by botanists in search of plant species that are related to the Middlemist red.

4. Erythrina Schliebenii

Photo: WWF

In the south-east area of Tanzania, during the botanical explorations, 50 bunch of trees were re-discovered in the year 2012 which is Erythrina Schliebenii. As per the statistics, only 10 to 50 trees are present now which makes them the rarest species.

These trees grow only in the rocky areas that are not suited for any cultivation. The size of the tree is from 5 to 10 meters long, terminal leaflets are measured 14 centimetres wide while lateral leaflets are 14 cm long, and petioles are measured up to 8 inches long. Recently, the IUCN has named the tree in the status of critically endangered species.

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5. Flame Lily

Photo: WorldAtlas

The flame lily (Gloriosa superba) is native to Asia and the tropical and southern regions of Africa. The colors of the flower range from dark pink or reddish to yellow and orange. Like the corpse flower, the flame lily can grow to be quite tall, even as tall as three meters.

If you ever come across one of these beautiful specimens, you probably shouldn’t touch it, as it is poisonous, and will, at the least, cause skin irritation. Eating a flame lily can be deadly. In fact, they have been used to poison dogs and even induce abortions.

6. Ghost Orchid

Photo: Ever Widening Circles

Dendrophylax lindenil, also known as Ghost orchid, Palm polly and White frog orchid, is a perennial epiphyte. An endangered orchid in nature, cultivation of the plant has proven difficult. It consists of flat green roots with distinctive track marks used for moisture absorption.

The velamen, or outer layer, is used to obtain water and nutrients as well as for protection of the inner layers. The Ghost orchid blossoms between June and August and grows to 2 to 3-inches in length and 1 to 2-inches in width.

7. Jade Vine

Photo: Tinh Hoa

Jade Vine is a rare flower in the family of pea and bean. It can be only found in the rainforest of the Philippines. Jade Vine have claw-shaped flowers, which can grow up to 3 meters in size. The color of this beautiful flower varies from blue to light green.

As Jade Vine is sometimes pollinated by bats, it shows luminous quality at night. The natural pollinators and constantly changing environmental conditions are which make Jade Vine very rare.

8. Franklin Tree Flower

Photo: Shelter Island Reporter - Times Review

Franklinia or Franklin Tree flower is from the tea family of the monotypic genus. Its native is near Georgia, southeastern parts of the US. Besides extinct in the wild, it survives as an ornamental cultivated one. To mature from the seed capsule, the franklin tree requires 12 to 14 months which makes them rare. It pollinates in late summer or early rainy and they set fruits only during the subsequent summer.

They are difficult to cultivate and have a good reputation among the gardeners. It needs particularly sandy, high-acid soil and not any clay soil, or excessive moisture which makes disturbance to its roots.

9. Chocolate Cosmos

Photo: Flickr

They are found extensively in the Mexico region. These are extinct in the wild over hundreds of years which makes them rare. Chocolate cosmos is the most popular cultivated plant having the smell of resembling chocolate so the name came.

The species had started cultivation in 1885 and created a non-fertile clone in 1902. It requires mainly sunny places to grow and flowers during Midsummer to late summer. Cosmos flowers are brownish and dark red in color which grew around 3-4 cm. The plants are perennial which is easy to grow and will be the attraction among the many in the gardens.

10. Youtan Poluo

Photo: Pinterest

Youtan Poluo is one of the most interesting plants in the world. It is said to be youtan poluo blooms only once every 3000 years. The stories have said that the blooming of youtan poluo is an indication of the reincarnation of the Buddha. That’s why it takes 3000 years for blooming.

Youtan poluo is not at all look like a flower. It is very tiny and produces a sandal wood-like odor. It was Mr. Ding, a Chinese farmer who first discovered this amazing plant. Youtan poluo can be seen in China, Korea, Taiwan, and the US in rare times. There are many studies that have been undergoing to find out the secret behind the growth of youtan poluo.