Konjac plant (Amorphophallus konjac)

Since last Monday, there has been a special guest residing in the Biology Department office here at Trent University.  It is a Konjac plant (Amorphophallus konjac) owned by one of the professors, and it is quite special because it has only flowered three times in the past twenty years.

The inflorescence, like many species in the genus Amorphophallus, emits an unpleasant odor that attracts pollinators (although I seem to have a strange sense of smell which doesn't bother me at all).

The inflorescence when it first arrived on Monday.  It consisted of the spadix (flower spike) enclosed by a spathe (a sheathing bract).  The tip of the spadix broke off during transportation.