Red Ginger or ‘Awapuhi

Description:

The red ginger is a plant with showy flowers on long brightly colored red bracts. They may look like the bloom, but the true flower is the small white flower found on the top. It tends to like to be well watered and not left to dry out. It can be grown as a houseplant and its cur flowers can be used in arrangements. It also tends to spread.

Habitat:

This plant can be found in Malaysia, where it is native. It can also be found in Hawai‘i, Samoa, Trinidad, Grenada, St. Lucia, Dominica, St. Vincent, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Puerto Rico, Suriname, and many Central American countries like Belize. It prefers partial shade and moist humid conditions, although it can tolerate full sun in some climates. This particular species was found on Maili‘ili‘i Road in Wai‘anae, Hawai‘i.

Notes:

The red ginger is a Polynesian introduced plant to Hawai‘i. It has many traditional uses. This includes using the mature part of the plant as a shampoo. It could also be used to flavor meat. The roots could be used medicinally to cure stomach aches.