Otherworldly, star-shaped flowers are the main draw of this intriguing group of succulents. RAY LEMIEUX, a grower for Tropiflora Nursery in Sarasota, Florida, was completely unprepared for the foot-wide blossom that opened at his new Florida home, stinking up his yard and attracting flies. "I just couldn't believe there could be a flower that smelled so bad," he recalls, a hint of disbelief still apparent in his voice. Despite this experience, Lemieux's encounter with giant carrion flower (Stapelia gigantea) was the starting point for his fascination with this bizarre group of plants comprising some 30 genera and loosely classified as "stapeliads." Stapeliads are lowgrowing, mostly leafless succulents with upright or drooping angular stems. The stems branch from their bases to form clumps that can grow quite large over time. They are primarily grown as houseplants, in cool greenhouses in temperate regions, and outdoors in warm regions that have relatively dry winters.
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