Scarlet the Corpse Flower Is Blooming at San Francisco’s Conservatory of Flowers
San Francisco, June 25, 2026. A corpse flower named Scarlet is in bloom at the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, and the window to see it is short. The Conservatory posted a bloom update on June 24, and the plant is open now. Titan arums stay open for only about two days before they collapse, so June 25 is the last full day of viewing.
What is blooming
Scarlet is a titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum), the species the Conservatory of Flowers calls a corpse flower because of the rotting-flesh odor it releases when it opens. The Conservatory says the titan arum blooms only once every three to five years and stays open for roughly two days, with the central spadix withering soon after. The inflorescence takes about a month to build before it opens quickly. Scarlet last bloomed in 2023.
The odor serves a purpose. According to the Conservatory, the smell attracts carrion beetles and flies that pollinate the plant in the wild. Titan arums are native to the rainforests of Sumatra, Indonesia, and are listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, with fewer than 1,000 plants remaining in their native habitat. The Conservatory describes the titan arum as the largest unbranched inflorescence in the plant kingdom, reaching up to 10 feet tall.
How to see Scarlet on June 25
The Conservatory of Flowers is at 100 John F. Kennedy Drive in Golden Gate Park. For June 25, the Conservatory lists daytime viewing from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with general admission, plus an after-hours viewing from 5 to 9 p.m. that needs a separate timed ticket. All visitors, including San Francisco residents, need an after-hours ticket for evening entry. Members get an exclusive 9 to 10 p.m. hour, expedited entry, and 20 percent off after-hours tickets.
Daytime tickets and after-hours tickets are sold separately through the Conservatory. Current prices and the live bloom status are on the Conservatory’s corpse flower page. For how the Conservatory’s regular admission and San Francisco resident free days work, see our guide to free museum days in San Francisco.
Getting there
The free Golden Gate Park Shuttle stops along John F. Kennedy Drive near the Conservatory. Muni’s 5 Fulton runs along Fulton Street at the park’s northern edge, a few blocks from the building. Several Muni lines serve the streets bordering the park. The stretch of JFK Drive in front of the Conservatory is a car-free promenade, so plan to walk in from nearby park paths or the Music Concourse.
Details
What: Scarlet the corpse flower (titan arum) in bloom
Where: Conservatory of Flowers, 100 John F. Kennedy Drive, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
When: June 25, 2026. Daytime 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; after-hours 5 to 9 p.m. (separate ticket)
Cost: Daytime with general admission; after-hours requires a separate timed ticket. Members save 20 percent on after-hours.
The bloom was announced by the Conservatory of Flowers and covered by local outlets including KRON4. For more on the park’s gardens and the city’s collections, see our guide to San Francisco’s major museums.
Featured image: Conservatory of Flowers by Kefr4000, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.