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About a year after the onset of the pandemic, Kathy Lange-Novak and her husband, Frank Novak, decided it was time to update their Fitchburg home.
After 26 years, the floors, countertops and appliances were showing their age, and the couple thought they needed to upgrade before putting the house on the market.
“This is the first time we’ve remodeled anything,” Kathy said. “It needed an overhaul.”
Like so many Americans, the recently retired couple had spent most of the past year at home as COVID-19 health restrictions limited their social activities.
“It’s one thing when you go, ‘We could really use new carpeting, but we can go to the movies,’” and forget about it, Lange-Novak said. “When you have to look at it — that’s when you think, ‘I really need to do something about it.’”
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P.J. Ender, lead carpenter for Degnan Design-Build-Remodel in DeForest, works in the kitchen of a Middleton home undergoing a complete first-floor remodel. U.S. homeowners are expected to spend a record $430 billion this year on renovations.
Spurred by a housing shortage, aging structures and occupants, and months spent cooped up indoors, U.S. homeowners spent nearly $370 billion last year updating and renovating their homes, according to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. That record number is expected to top $430 billion this year, a whopping 28% increase from 2020 spending levels.
“It’s a big market,” said Abbe Will, a senior researcher at the center, which has been tracking residential remodeling for nearly three decades.
While there are multiple factors, Will said lifestyle changes brought about by the pandemic have only encouraged more home improvement spending, as people seek to make homes fit their changing needs — whether that’s working from home or just spending more time there.
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Will
“Homeowners (want) to maximize every inch of space they have when they’re spending so much more time at home,” Will said.
‘A building crescendo’
Initially, 2020 looked to be another year of modest growth for the home remodeling industry, until the shutdown of most nonessential services in March brought projects to a halt. But builders say their phones started ringing again that summer as people realized the pandemic wasn’t going away.
“It’s just been a building crescendo of work,” said Chad Speight, owner and president of Chad’s Design-Build in Madison. “We started to see an uptick in demand as people were stuck at home staring at whatever needed to be improved or replaced.”
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Degnan Design-Build-Remodel employees Amy Volkmann and David Luecht hang wallpaper as part of a home remodeling project in Middleton. Builders say people are looking to expand, create spaces for work or recreation, redo bathrooms and kitchens, and generally make their homes more comfortable.
Abe Degnan, owner of Degnan Design-Build-Remodel in DeForest, said people are looking to make their homes bigger, create spaces for work or recreation, redo bathrooms and kitchens and generally make their homes more comfortable.
“People are eating out less and cooking more,” Degnan said. “Things they used to ignore … are driving them crazy.”
The unprecedented demand, combined with labor shortages and supply chain issues, has resulted in lead times of one or even two years and project delays.
Speight said he’s basically booked through next year, even with a couple of new employees. “We would hire more carpenters right now if we could,” he said.
Jonathan Graves, co-owner of Ironwood Construction in Madison, said he’s been so busy the past two years that he’s had to turn away new clients.
“We could not keep up,” he said. “We had to pick and choose our jobs.”
Material shortages and volatile pricing have also created logistical challenges.
Lumber prices quadrupled in the spring of 2021 amid surging demand and supply chain constraints and are still more than double pre-pandemic levels. That had ripple effects on manufactured materials like windows and cabinets.
Speight said suppliers used to give contractors a month or two notice of annual price increases.
“Now we get notification on Thursday that prices are going up tomorrow,” he said. “Take it or leave it.”
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Joanna Ivey used a microwave, crockpot and toaster for about six months this year while remodeling the kitchen and dining room of her Westmorland home, but she said the inconvenience “will absolutely be worth it.”
Extra incentive
Joanna Ivey and Jack Gordon got a lesson in supply-chain management this spring, midway through a major home renovation.
After nearly a decade, Ivey said 2020 was the year she finally decided to remodel her 64-year-old West Side ranch.
“We kind of had this vision since we moved in. We just didn’t have the money to do it when the kids were little,” she said. “The kitchen was literally falling apart.”
Ivey ran her graphic design firm from home even before the pandemic, but the lockdown provided some extra incentive to remodel the kitchen and living space.
“You just stare at it all the time,” she said. “We’re not having people over.”
Ivey started interviewing contractors in November 2020, and construction started in January, a full year after signing a contract. The work was supposed to be done by early April, but the cabinets didn’t arrive on time.
“They didn’t have the wood, which is nuts to me,” she said.
Ivey said the project should be done in time for her son’s graduation party in June, and despite living without a kitchen for six months, “it will absolutely be worth it.”
“It’s a ranch, so it will be great for retirement and beyond,” she said. “It’s the perfect house and the perfect location.”
Other forces
While the pandemic was a catalyst for many home renovation projects, it’s hardly the only factor.
Since the housing market crash that triggered the recession of 2008-2009, U.S. homebuilders simply haven’t kept pace with demand. In fact, spending on home repair and maintenance has outpaced new homebuilding.
“We’re not building enough to meet the demand, and that puts a lot of pressure on the existing housing stock,” Will said.
At the same time, Americans move about half as often as they did three decades ago, according to Census Bureau data. Homeowners are even less mobile, moving just once every 20 years on average.
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Eppli
And over the past couple of years most homeowners have refinanced at historically low interest rates, creating yet another incentive to stay put, said Mark Eppli, director of the James A. Graaskamp Center for Real Estate at the Wisconsin School of Business.
That means Baby Boomers are sticking around — or “aging in place” — at a time when millions of millennials each year are reaching the traditional home-buying age, contributing to additional pressure on housing prices.
And because of soaring prices, Will said the average homeowner has accumulated hundreds of thousands of dollars in equity that they can use to finance their improvements.
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Ruslans Kozloeskis, a carpenter with Degnan Design-Build-Remodel, adds hardware to new drawers at a Middleton home renovation.
So long as the bottleneck persists, property values will continue to rise, which is good for homeowners but bad news for millennials and others who find themselves priced out of the market and unable to accumulate property wealth.
“It makes it more difficult for that first-time homebuyer to enter the market,” Eppli said. “There’s not much of a silver lining for that group.”
Driven by demographic shifts, economic forces and the societal changes wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin home prices are soaring, forcing home buyers to take unprecedented risks.
The march of time
Just as more homeowners are aging in place, their homes are also aging.
Most Wisconsin homes are more than 40 years old, according to Census Bureau data, and more than a third were built before 1960. That’s a lot of roofs, siding and carpeting that needs to be replaced. And a lot of homes built for a different lifestyle.
![Home remodeling](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/1b/01b0226b-49a5-5a8b-a53c-def9333021df/6275aa291b390.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
Heidi Kent and her husband, Mark McFadden, plan to expand the kitchen and add a main-floor bathroom to make their East Side bungalow better fit their needs as they age.
Consider Mark McFadden and Heidi Kent’s Near East Side bungalow. The only bathroom is on the second floor, and the kitchen can comfortably accommodate one, which may have been fine when the home was built in 1919.
“The kitchen was treated as this very utilitarian environment,” McFadden said. “When I go over to friends’ houses … I expect to spend time in the kitchen.”
Assuming the materials are available, McFadden and Kent hope to start work this summer on a long-planned renovation to enlarge the kitchen, add a main floor bath and make the home more accessible.
An internet security consultant, McFadden has worked from home for decades and said the pandemic wasn’t really a factor in their decision, though it has affected the timing of the job.
“The planning is done. Everything is ordered,” he said. “Now it’s mostly a waiting game.”
McFadden, 66, said he and Kent love the neighborhood and want to make their home “a more wonderful place for us to spend the rest of our lives.”
![Home remodeling](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/8d/c8d12f35-7ed3-523b-ac6e-182793b72525/6275aa2a43d05.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
Heidi Kent looks at designs for her home renovation. Kent and her husband, Mark McFadden, say they like their East Side neighborhood but want to make their 103-year-old home more comfortable.
“We’re not interested in accumulating property wealth,” McFadden said. “We’re interested in having a house that’s more comfortable … easier for older people to get around.”
Kathy Lange-Novak had different ideas when she embarked on her home renovations last year. She figured fixing up the home was a prerequisite for selling it a few years from now.
But now that the work is done, Lange-Novak said she doesn’t want to leave.
“Being home a lot made us say, ‘Let’s fix it up,’” she said. “Fixing it up has made us want to stay home more.”
Photos: Smelling a rare corpse flower bloom
Corpse flower
![Corpse flower](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=150%2C109 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=200%2C146 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=225%2C164 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=300%2C218 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=400%2C291 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=540%2C393 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=640%2C466 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=750%2C546 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=990%2C721 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C753 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C874 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C970 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1074 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/c7/bc78aaae-fed1-5533-aaf4-87ca4c9d0131/6274364649e04.image.jpg?resize=1687%2C1228 2008w)
Meg Novich, of Madison, with daughters Ona, 4, and Milena, 7, reacts to the pungent smell of a 68-inch corpse flower that bloomed Thursday in Olbrich Botanical Gardens’ Bolz Conservatory. The plant last bloomed in 2010.
Corpse flower
![Corpse flower](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=150%2C158 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=200%2C211 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=225%2C237 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=300%2C316 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=400%2C421 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=540%2C569 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=640%2C674 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=750%2C790 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=990%2C1043 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C1090 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C1264 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C1404 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/cb/7cb169a3-882c-5b70-86c1-a9bbf12ecd7d/6274364483575.image.jpg?resize=1402%2C1477 1476w)
Tom Ottens, of Madison, who got off his third-shift job at 6:30 a.m., decided to stay up and see the flower that only blooms four to five times during it’s 40-year lifespan.
Corpse flower
![Corpse flower](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=150%2C112 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=200%2C150 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=225%2C169 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=300%2C225 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=400%2C300 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=540%2C405 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=640%2C480 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=750%2C562 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=990%2C742 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C776 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C900 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C999 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1107 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/3e/a3ebecbc-8b67-50d7-acc6-bfaf215cf191/62743647dda71.image.jpg?resize=1662%2C1246 2008w)
Uri Andrews of Middleton holds up his 4-year-old son, Benjamin, as Rafael, 2, waits to catch a whiff of the corpse flower Thursday.
Corpse flower
![Corpse flower](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=150%2C105 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=200%2C141 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=225%2C158 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=300%2C211 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=400%2C281 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=540%2C380 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=640%2C450 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=750%2C527 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=990%2C696 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C728 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C844 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C937 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1038 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/0/5f/05f2519c-c805-5972-b802-d0910ec404be/627436459a20c.image.jpg?resize=1717%2C1207 2008w)
Ronda and Tom Neuhauser, of Fitchburg, take their turn to get a close-up look at the corpse flower in bloom.
2022050507CorpseFlower0190AJA-05052022140849
![2022050507CorpseFlower0190AJA-05052022140849](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/20/6205411b-3f92-5f7c-8934-2ec82f6a5e6c/62743647176f5.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
Visitors get a close look at the corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum, that bloomed after reaching a heigh of just under 68-inches, at Olbrich Botanical Gardens’ Bolz Conservatory in Madison, Wis., Thursday, May 5, 2022. The plant, which was a donation from UW-Madison’s D.C. Smith Greenhouse in 2006, last bloomed in 2010 to a height of 6-feet. Corpse flowers bloom four to five times on average during their 40-year lifespan. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
2022050504CorpseFlower0083AJA-05052022140849
![2022050504CorpseFlower0083AJA-05052022140849](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=225%2C149 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=300%2C199 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=400%2C266 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=540%2C358 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=640%2C425 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=750%2C498 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=990%2C657 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C687 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C797 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C885 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C980 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/32/e3243e9f-cd34-54c9-82a3-68ddd0c8e0a6/62743648ad008.image.jpg?resize=1767%2C1173 2008w)
Visitors take photos of the corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum, that bloomed after reaching a heigh of just under 68-inches, at Olbrich Botanical Gardens’ Bolz Conservatory in Madison, Wis., Thursday, May 5, 2022. The plant, which was a donation from UW-Madison’s D.C. Smith Greenhouse in 2006, last bloomed in 2010 to a height of 6-feet. Corpse flowers bloom four to five times on average during their 40-year lifespan. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
2022050503CorpseFlower0171AJA-05052022140849
![2022050503CorpseFlower0171AJA-05052022140849](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=150%2C97 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=200%2C129 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=225%2C145 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=300%2C193 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=400%2C257 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=540%2C347 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=640%2C412 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=750%2C483 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=990%2C637 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C666 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C772 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C858 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C950 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/a4/ba4d82ac-b087-5e54-b559-bab024cbcc6a/62743649b845c.image.jpg?resize=1795%2C1155 2008w)
Visitors wind around Bolz Conservatory as they wait their turn to get a look at the corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum, that bloomed after reaching a heigh of just under 68-inches, at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, Wis., Thursday, May 5, 2022. The plant, which was a donation from UW-Madison’s D.C. Smith Greenhouse in 2006, last bloomed in 2010 to a height of 6-feet. Corpse flowers bloom four to five times on average during their 40-year lifespan. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Corpse flower
![Corpse flower](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/26/626730bc-6ba8-5224-abd2-43c760a0c4ba/627436552d785.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
Hundreds of people waited for hours Thursday to get a glimpse — and whiff — of a rare corpse flower bloom at Olbrich Botanical Gardens. The plant, one of four at the garden, last bloomed in 2010. Blooms typically last 24 to 36 hours.
2022050509CorpseFlower0055AJA-05052022140849
![2022050509CorpseFlower0055AJA-05052022140849](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=150%2C109 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=200%2C146 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=225%2C164 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=300%2C219 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=400%2C292 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=540%2C394 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=640%2C467 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=750%2C547 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=990%2C723 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C756 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C876 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C973 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1077 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/df/7df7ee27-d308-541f-9006-245ba48dc83b/62743655c8ccf.image.jpg?resize=1685%2C1230 2008w)
Visitors get a look at the corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum, that bloomed after reaching a heigh of just under 68-inches, at Olbrich Botanical Gardens’ Bolz Conservatory in Madison, Wis., Thursday, May 5, 2022. The plant, which was a donation from UW-Madison’s D.C. Smith Greenhouse in 2006, last bloomed in 2010 to a height of 6-feet. Corpse flowers bloom four to five times on average during their 40-year lifespan. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
2022050505CorpseFlower0012AJA-05052022140849
![2022050505CorpseFlower0012AJA-05052022140849](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=150%2C105 150w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=200%2C141 200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=225%2C158 225w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=300%2C211 300w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=400%2C281 400w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=540%2C380 540w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=640%2C450 640w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=750%2C527 750w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=990%2C696 990w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C728 1035w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C844 1200w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C937 1333w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1038 1476w, https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/madison.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/59/359dad65-ce5f-50d4-8264-92ff6d88f686/627436568784d.image.jpg?resize=1717%2C1207 2008w)
Visitors line up outside to get a close look at the corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum, that bloomed after reaching a heigh of just under 68-inches, at Olbrich Botanical Gardens’ Bolz Conservatory in Madison, Wis., Thursday, May 5, 2022. The plant, which was a donation from UW-Madison’s D.C. Smith Greenhouse in 2006, last bloomed in 2010 to a height of 6-feet. Corpse flowers bloom four to five times on average during their 40-year lifespan. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
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