Thousands of people have lined up to get a glimpse of a rare flower that smells like rotting flesh and is almost two metres tall in the Mount Lofty Botanic Garden near Adelaide.

The Amorphophallus titanum, or more commonly known as the corpse flower, began opening on Monday in the garden's glasshouse.

Loading

Due to the large amount of interest in the event the garden extended its opening time by two hours to 6pm.

By 4:00pm on Tuesday, the park had recorded 4,000 visitors.

The garden's Matt Coulter said the plant, which is native to Sumatra, had been grown from a seed planted about 10 years ago.

Mr Coulter said the flower, which is about a metre wide, smelt like a "dead animal".

"When I opened the glasshouse this morning it almost blew me away it is so strong. Incredible," he said.

"I almost had to stop myself from throwing up it was so bad.

"Until you have actually experienced it, it is the first time I've actually smelt it; it's like nothing else."

He said the flower had grown in the past month and its largest growth spurt was measured at 18 centimetres in one day.

"I came and looked at it the first thing yesterday morning and it was totally closed ... five or six o'clock at night it was actually almost fully opened," he said.

"It's not like a constant smell, the smell sort of goes in waves ... all of a sudden it hits you."

He said in the wild the plant needed to be cross-pollinated by bees, which could bring pollen from another flower three or four kilometres away.

People visiting the park have been directed to the glasshouse by wardens in the garden's lower car park.

Those hoping to visit the gardens on Wednesday are out of luck, however, with the gardens closed due to a severe fire danger rating declared by the Country Fire Service (CFS) for the Mount Lofty Ranges.

Loading...

Visitors flock to see 'once in a decade event'

Ros Brady said she came along because it was a once in a decade event.

"I think it's spectacular to be able to see it here in Adelaide and to see what the flower looks like as well," she said.

"I thought it was going to smell more than what it does but the impression of the actual flower is beautiful.

"It looks like purple velvet."

Kelly Dann waited in line for about an hour to catch a glimpse and whiff of the flesh-like smell.

"We were thinking it wouldn't take that long to come and see the stinky flower," she said.

"We had to park a long way away and we committed so we ended up staying.

"It's worth it, it's a very cool flower."