Rafflesia
Rafflesia arnoldii flower and bud
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Malpighiales
Family:	Rafflesiaceae
Genus:	Rafflesia R.Br.
Species
See text.

Rafflesia is a genus of parasitic flowering plants. It contains approximately 28 species (including four incompletely characterized species as recognized by Willem Meijer in 1997), all found in southeastern Asia, on the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, Thailand and the Philippines.^[1]

Rafflesia was found in the Indonesian rain forest by an Indonesian guide working for Dr. Joseph Arnold in 1818, and named after Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the leader of the expedition. It was discovered even earlier by Louis Deschamps in Java between 1791 and 1794, but his notes and illustrations, seized by the British in 1803, were not available to western science until 1861.^{[citation needed]}

The plant has no stems, leaves or true roots. It is an endoparasite of vines in the genus Tetrastigma (Vitaceae), spreading its absorptive organ, the haustorium, inside the tissue of the vine. The only part of the plant that can be seen outside the host vine is the five-petaled flower. In some species, such as Rafflesia arnoldii, the flower may be over 100 centimetres (39 in) in diameter, and weigh up to 10 kilograms (22 lb). Even the smallest species, R. baletei, has 12 cm diameter flowers. The flowers look and smell like rotting flesh, hence its local names which translate to "corpse flower" or "meat flower" (see below). The foul odor attracts insects such as flies, which transport pollen from male to female flowers. Most species have separate male and female flowers, but a few have bisexual flowers. Little is known about seed dispersal. However, tree shrews and other forest mammals eat the fruits and disperse the seeds. Rafflesia is the official state flower of Indonesia, the Sabah state in Malaysia, and of the Surat Thani Province, Thailand.

The name "corpse flower" applied to Rafflesia can be confusing because this common name also refers to the titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum) of the family Araceae. Moreover, because Amorphophallus has the world's largest unbranched inflorescence, it is sometimes mistakenly credited as having the world's largest flower. Both Rafflesia and Amorphophallus are flowering plants, but they are only distantly related. Rafflesia arnoldii has the largest "single" flower of any flowering plant, at least in terms of weight. A. titanum has the largest "unbranched" inflorescence, while the talipot palm (Corypha umbraculifera) forms the largest "branched" inflorescence, containing thousands of flowers; the talipot is monocarpic, meaning the individual plants die after flowering.

Classification[link]

Rafflesia keithii bloom, approximately 80 cm in diameter

R. kerrii flower

Three Rafflesia pricei growing in close proximity near Mount Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia

New hypothesis of Rafflesiaceae derived from within Euphorbiaceae: Rafflesiaceae in red, Euphorbiaceae in black (redrawn from Davis et al., 2007)

Species

• Rafflesia arnoldii
• Rafflesia aurantia
• Rafflesia azlanii
• Rafflesia baletei
• Rafflesia bengkuluensis
• Rafflesia cantleyi
• Rafflesia gadutensis
• Rafflesia hasseltii
• Rafflesia keithii
• Rafflesia kerrii
• Rafflesia leonardi
• Rafflesia lobata
• Rafflesia manillana
• Rafflesia micropylora
• Rafflesia mira
• Rafflesia patma
• Rafflesia philippensis
• Rafflesia pricei
• Rafflesia rochussenii
• Rafflesia schadenbergiana
• Rafflesia speciosa
• Rafflesia tengku-adlinii
• Rafflesia tuan-mudae
• Rafflesia verrucosa

Unverified species

• Rafflesia borneensis
• Rafflesia ciliata
• Rafflesia titan
• Rafflesia witkampii

Comparison of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences of Rafflesia with other angiosperm mtDNA indicated this parasite evolved from photosynthetic plants of the order Malpighiales.^[2] Another study from that same year confirmed this result using both mtDNA and nuclear DNA sequences, and showed the three other groups traditionally classified in Rafflesiaceae were unrelated.^[3] A more recent study found Rafflesia and its relatives to be embedded within the family Euphorbiaceae, which is surprising, as members of that family typically have very small flowers.^[4] According to their analysis, the rate of flower size evolution was more or less constant throughout the family except at the origin of Rafflesiaceae, where the flowers rapidly evolved to become much larger before reverting to the slower rate of change.

Malaysian species[link]

Species native to Malaysia include Rafflesia pricei, Rafflesia tengku-adlinii, Rafflesia keithii, and Rafflesia arnoldii. Some Malaysian species, such as R. keithii, begin blooming at night and begin to decompose only two to three days after blooming, this after a six- to 9-month budding period. Male and female flowers must be open simultaneously for pollination to occur, hence successful pollination is quite rare and some species may be endangered. R. keithii is found along the eastern slopes of Mount Kinabalu in the Lohan Valley of Sabah.^[1]

Philippine species[link]

Since 2002, a tremendous amount of activity by Filipino scientists has resulted in the discovery and naming several new species of Rafflesia. Before then, only two species were known: R. manillana and R. schadenbergiana, the latter of which was last seen in 1882 on Mt. Apo in Davao Province on Mindanao Island, but was thought to be extinct. The following gives a chronicle of these activities:

• 2002. A Rafflesia was found in the mountains of Antique Province that differed from any previously described. It was named Rafflesia speciosa by Barcelona and Fernando (Kew Bulletin, 57: 647-651, 2002).
• 2005. Another Rafflesia was discovered in the Philippines by Drs. Fernando and Ong on remote Mount Candalaga, Maragusan, Compostela Valley province in Mindanao. It was named Rafflesia mira by Fernando and Ong (2005. Asia Life Sciences 14: 263-270). Another group (Madulid et al. 2005 Acta Manilana 53: 1-6) published another name (R. magnifica) later, thus R. mira stands as the nomenclaturally valid name. R. mira (45–60 cm in diameter), is approximately the same size as R. speciosa (45–56 cm) of Antique Province, but definitely larger than Luzon’s R. manillana (14–20 cm in diameter).^[5]
• 2005. During his expedition to Mt. Igtuog and Mt. Sakpaw in the Central Panay mountain range in April 2005, Renee Galang discovered a previously undescribed Rafflesia. This was named R. lobata by Galang and Madulid (2006, Folia Malaysiana 7: 1-8).
• 2006. Danny Balete collected a previously undescribed species of Rafflesia in 1991 in the Bicol Region of southern Luzon. The collection was not recognized as a new species until further field work confirmed that this taxon was different than R. manillana. Several new populations have also been seen in the Camarines Sur Province (Mount Isarog and Mount Iriga)] in the vicinity of Buhi and Iriga City. This was named R. baletei by Barcelona, Cajano, and Hadsall (2006. Kew Bulletin 61: 231-237). The names R. irigaense or R. irigaenses are invalid and refers to the same taxon.
• 2007. In 1994 Pascal Lays rediscovered buds of R. schadenbergiana in South Cotabato. His paper reporting this result has only recently been published. In 2007, Dr. Julie Barcelona visited yet another population of this rare species in Bukidnon. An account of this discovery was published the following year (2008. Flora Malesiana Bulletin, 14: 162-165; see also Parasitic Plant Connection).
• 2007. Mount Banahaw in Luzon, a popular destination for mountaineering and religious groups seemed, until recently, an unlikely spot to find a new species of Rafflesia. But such was the case. Ironically, two papers have been published naming this Rafflesia as a new species. Apparently the first one was by Madulid et al. (2006, Philippine Scientist 43: 43–51 - but only available July 2007) and the second by Barcelona et al. (2007, Blumea 52: 345–350). At this point, it seemed that the correct name was R. banahawensis, not R. banahaw. But more investigation by Julie Barcelona showed that this species was first named by Blanco in his Flora de Filipinas (1845). Thus, the correct name for this species is Rafflesia philippensis Blanco.
• 2007. A description of the Rafflesia from Mount Makiling on Luzon was published as a new species, R. panchoana by D. A. Madulid and coauthors (2007, Acta Manilana 55: 43-47 - but available only in 2008). Comparison to other populations of R. manillana by Dr. Barcelona and coauthors ^[6] lead them to conclude that this population is R. manillana.
• 2008. In the remote sitio Kinapawan in the coastal town of Lal-lo in Cagayan Valley, a Rafflesia was made known to Filipino botanists. Working with CAVAPPED, CI, and DENR staff, Julie Barcelona traveled to the site and collected the type of this Rafflesia. R. leonardi is similar to R. manillana (of Samar and Luzon) and R. lobata of Panay by the wide diaphragm aperture and flowers that grow on the roots and aerial portion of the vine. It is, however, different in its larger size (to 34 cm), central disk that is nearly smooth or with markedly reduced processes, and the absence of white blotches/windows inside the floral tube. It was determined that this was a new species and was named in honor of the late Leonardo Co who was an expert on the Cagayan flora (2008. Blumea 53: 223-228). It is the 5th Rafflesia found on Luzon and the 8th from the Philippines. In 2010 the name R. banaoana, was published by Pastor Malabrigo, Jr. of the University of the Philippines Los Baños for a Rafflesia found in the Balbalasang-Balbalan National Park in Kalinga, Luzon. This Rafflesia has since been carefully evaluated and found to be conspecific with R. leonardi ^[7] Popular articles describing R. leonardi can be found in the following references.^[8][9]
• 2009. The ninth species of Rafflesia from the Philippines, R. aurantia, was described in Barcelona et al. (Gardens' Bulletin Singapore 61 (1): 17-27), which also includes a summary of the current state of knowledge on Philippine Rafflesia. This species superficially resembles R. tengku-adlinii of northern Borneo but differs in a number of features such as ramenta, disk processes and anther number. The population occurs in the Quirino Protected Landscape, Quirino Province, Luzon.
• 2010. The tenth species of Rafflesia, Rafflesia verrucosa, found in the Philippines was named by Danny Balete and coauthors in the following publication ^[10] This Rafflesia is noteworthy in having small flowers whose perigone lobes are covered with dense warts (hence the name) as well as by possessing a bisexual flower with other unusual features not seen in any other Rafflesia species.

See also[link]

• Amorphophallus titanum, similar smelling plant, sometimes known as "corpse flower".
• Parasitic plant
• Carrion plant

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Jamili Nais (2001). Rafflesia of the world. Kota Kinabalu: Sabah Parks. ISBN 983-812-042-1. OCLC 50043098. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rafflesia

• Parasitic Plant Connection: Rafflesia Gallery
• Article: "The Role of Protected Areas in the Conservation of Rafflesia in Malaysia"
• ARKive: images and movies of the rafflesia (Rafflesia spp)

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (November 2010)

Patrick Blanc

CaixaForum Madrid

Halles, Avignon

Patrick Blanc, Centre commercial des quatre Temps, La Défense (Puteaux), Hauts-de-Seine

Patrick Blanc (born June 3, 1953, Paris) is a botanist, working at the French National Centre for Scientific Research,^[1] where he specializes in plants from tropical forests. He is the modern innovator of the green wall, yet recent scholarship on the subject suggest that the veritcal garden (aka. Green Wall, Botanical Brick) was invented by Professor Stanley Hart White at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1938. Professor White patented the first known Vertical Garden, or "Vegetation-Bearing Architectonic Structure and System", as a treatise on modern garden design, predating Patrick Blancs contemporary patents by nearly 50 years ^[2]:^[3], Blanc describes his vertical garden as follows:

This type of achievement exemplifies Blanc's ideas as an ecological engineer and also the 15th target of the Haute Qualité Environnementale ("High Quality Environment") project, although the latter gives particular stress to use of more local species, at least outdoors.

Works[link]

Green walls

• 1988 : First green wall, made at the Museum of Science and Industry in Paris
• 1998 : Fondation Cartier in Paris
• 2000 : Aquarium of Genoa, Italy
• 2001 : Perhsing Hall Hotel in Paris
• 2003 : Marithé & François Girbaud boutique in Manhattan
• 2003 : French Embassy in New Delhi
• 2004 : Green façade at the Administrative building of the Quai Branly Museum in Paris
• 2004 : 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan.
• 2005 : North face of the shopping centre in Avignon
• 2005 : Vinet Square in Bordeaux (with Michel Desvigne)
• 2005 : Siam Paragon shopping center in Bangkok
• 2006 : Weleda, 8th arrondissement of Paris
• 2007 : BHV Hommes shop (BHV for men), 4th arrondissement of Paris
• 2007 : CaixaForum Madrid
• 2008 : Arch at the roundabout at the Grand Theatre of Provence at Aix-en-Provence
• 2008 : Galeria Przymorze, shopping centre in Gdańsk, Poland^[4]
• 2008 : Melbourne Central Shopping Centre, Australia
• 2008 : Galeries Lafayette, Berlin Friedrichstraße, Germany
• 2009 : Athenaeum Hotel, Piccadilly, London, UK ^[5]
• 2010 : Ronald Lu & Partners, Hong Kong

Other works

• 1994 : Garden Festival of Chaumont-sur-Loire

Bibliography[link]

• 1990 : Biologie d'une canopée de forêt équatoriale : rapport de Mission Radeau des cimes, octobre-novembre 1989, Petit Saut, - Guyane française, ("Biology under an equatorial forest: report of Study Radeus, October–November 1989, French Guyana, a collective study under the direction of Francis Hallé et Patrick Blanc, Departement of Industry and xylochemistry
• 2002 : Être plante à l'ombre des forêts tropicales ("Putting plants in the light of tropical forests"), Éditions Nathan
• 2005 : Le bonheur d'être plante, ("The pleasure of being a plant"), Éditions Maren Sell (ISBN 2-350-04018-6)
• 2007 : Folies végétales ("Plants' follies"), (lecture, Paris), éditions Chêne
• 2008 : Le Mur Végétal, de la nature à la ville ("The green wall in town and country"), éditions Michel Lafon

See also[link]

• Green roof
• Living wall
• Urban agriculture
• List of gardening topics
• Hanging Gardens of Babylon

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Patrick Blanc

• Patrick Blanc's homepage
• InFrame.tv video interview with Patrick Blanc which includes footage of the construction of his vertical garden in Melbourne, Australia
• 'All His Rooms Are Living Rooms', New York Times, 3 May 2007
• Interview with Patrick Blanc by Ping magazine.

Michio Kurihara (栗原ミチオ, Kurihara Michio^?) (born November 23, 1961 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese guitarist who has played with Ghost, Boris and The Stars, formerly known as White Heaven. He has also released a solo album, Sunset Notes.^[1] He collaborated with Boris on the albums Rainbow and Cloud Chamber, and also appears on the Boris album Smile. His equipment mostly includes vintage Gibson SG Standard models, a few Fender Twin Reverb amps, as well various exotic pedals, notably Zvex pedals.

References[link]

1. ^ http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p252322/biography

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