Zach Dorsch photo: The trees have students challenging each other to take a whiff.

As spring arises flowers bloom and trees blossom. Mercyhurst campus houses Bradford pear trees that are beginning to have a bad reputation. This particular tree gives off an unwelcoming stench of rotting flesh that has several students walking around in disgust.

The scientific name for this tree is Pyrus calleryana. The tree was first brought to America from China in 1908. Today, it is seen in urban settings all over North America.

This particular tree is known for its gorgeous white flowers that come out in the spring. Many refer to this tree as “easy on the eyes, not the nose.”

In small doses many do not recognize the unusual scent, but in great numbers, the smell is unbearable. The smell comes from the flower of the tree that blossoms in early spring and dies in the fall time.

Zach Dorsch photo: These are the flowers that give off the troubling scent.