Need ID on rare bulb/plant

I'm told that this plant is very rare. I know it by the name of Sacred Heart Lily of India, and I would like to confirm that name and get more info on where it originated. It starts with a bulb, sprouts a 3-4 foot purple lily from the dry bulb (also producing lots of rotten hamburger smell), then goes dormant and, when planted in soil, produces a small tree with a speckled trunk. The larger the bulb (3-4 years old), the more trees grow from a single bulb. This year, the 4 year-old bulb produced three trees from the single bulb.

The bulb shown is 3 years old and is in the bottom of a regular paper shopping bag. It's about the size of a softball.

Any info would be appreciated.

 

A species of Amorphophallus.

 

Thank you so much for the really rapid response. A little searching produced a match to my plant - it's the Amorphophallus Konjac. It is indeed rare here in the states, although a couple of nurseries do sell the bulbs.

I will enjoy the plant even more now that I know its origin and history.

Thanks, Michael.

 

interesting!!!

are the 'tree's' after the bloom the normal thing for these plants?? or is it just this particular one that does it?

 

From what I've researched online, that seems to be the case. All the varieties of the Amorphophallus bulb that I saw online produce a 'lily' and then (some after a dormant period) produce a tree, some of which are quite tall. Your part of the country isn't so different from my location, so you might want to try this plant for a little excitement. It's quite an experience to go through the lily growth and then the tree and the production of yet more bulbs from the tree.

Good luck.

 

Nice Aroid!!
I wouldn't imagina A konjac would be too 'rare' over there is it?
I wouldn't know I am in Australia and it is not too hard to get over here, just curious, thats all

Ed

 

Technically, it's actually a single outsize leaf, not a "tree" ;-)

 

Hi, Ed. Because I didn't know the correct name, I wasn't able to search for sources here in the states. Now that I've done a little shopping, it looks as if I could order one if I needed to. The reason I thought they were rare is because someone told me so, and because the bulb I had was the only one I had ever known about. Glad they're easy to get in Australia.

Rita

 

Thanks, Michael. I learn more and more each day.

Rita

 

Good luck to ya Rita!! Enjoy : )

Ed