The number of ginger plant species available
for avid collectors (if you aren’t one yet, you may be at risk of becoming one)
is staggering. And why would you want to stop at a few plants? There is so much
variation between species: where one flower looks like an otherworldly
pinecone, another resembles a mutant orchid, and yet another looks like a
tropical insect dreamed up by a cartoonist.
Common Names
Flowering ginger plants
aren’t known by any other common names, although some individual species bear
such uninteresting names as “red ginger” or “yellow ginger.” Collectors should
choose plants based on the Latin name rather than any common name to avoid
mislabeled plants and muddled taxonomy issues. Gardeners just looking for an attractive
container plant can look for a plant in bloom that they admire, as all tropical
gingers thrive under similar growing conditions.
Description
Ginger plants spread and emerge from rhizomes, the thick fleshy roots you are
accustomed to seeing in the market for seasoning food. The leaves are usually
lance-shaped or oblong, deep green, and glossy. Flowers vary greatly from one
genus to another, and may be borne throughout the growing season in tropical
climates.
Native Country
Ginger is an adaptable
tropical plant, and grows throughout much of Southeast Asia. Although some
people associate flowering gingers with the state of Hawaii, many of the
species were introduced to the island as ornamentals, and some, like the red
button ginger, are considered invasive plants.
Size:
Many of the flowering
gingers sold as garden plants reach an average height between four and five
feet tall. Gardeners should consult the care tag of the individual species to
choose a proper location or container size.
Source: http://flowers.about.com/od/Exotic-Flowers/p/Flowering-Ginger-Plants.htm
