Hundreds gather for rare Queen of the Night cactus bloom in downtown Sarasota

SARASOTA, Fla. - Hundreds of people gathered at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in downtown Sarasota to witness the annual blooming of the Queen of the Night. 

The rare cactus produces hundreds of flowers for just a single evening each year, prompting a spontaneous, free community viewing party.

Queen of the Night bloom

What we know:

The night-blooming cactus puts on a spectacular show by flowering only one evening per year. 

"When the sun comes up, the buds will close and that show is over until a whole year from now," Jennifer Rominiecki, the president and CEO of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, explained.

Signs of a bloom

Dig deeper:

When the mature buds split in the morning, the garden team knows the flowers will open that night. 

"As the flowers open, we expect to have hundreds of flowers at the same time," Rominiecki explained.

When the sun rises the next morning, the buds close, ending the event until the following year.

"My favorite part of this night is seeing the true wonder on everyone's faces as the flower opens," Rominiecki said.

Bringing a community together

What they're saying:

"Once people come and see it, they want to come back and see it again," Rominiecki said.

Rominiecki explained that she enjoys doing this annual event. 

"I'm really happy to see a lot of people here sitting in beach chairs looking at a plant," Rominiecki said. "What could be better than that?"

Sarasota community viewing party

What we don't know:

The exact date of the bloom varies each year, depending entirely on when the buds mature and split.

SarasotaEnvironment