Red ginger

Description:

Alpinia purpurata grows as a perennial herbaceous plant and reaches stature heights of 2 to 3 meters. The alternate leaves are arranged short-stalked. The shiny green, simple leaf blade is lanceolate with a length of usually 30 to 70 (to 80) cm and a width of 10 to 22 cm wide. The terminal, up to 30 cm long inflorescences usually wear red (sometimes pink or white in cultivated forms), up to 3 cm long, ovate or broadly ovate bracts. In the axils of the bracts are each one or two, rarely up to five flowers on reddish bracts. The hermaphrodite flowers are zygomorphic and ternate with double perianth. The reddish calyx tube is usually 1.7 to 2 (up to 2.7) cm long and bare. The crown is white. The white labellum has two lateral lobes and a central area which is three-lobed or nearly entire, and about as long as the corolla. The stamens are 6 to 7 mm long. The ovary is 3 to 4 mm long and bare. Alpinia purpurata forms with a diameter of 2 to 3 cm nearly spherical capsule with edged fruit seeds having a diameter of 3 mm.

Habitat:

The originally from Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu Alpinia purpurata today is widespread in many tropical regions, such as in Hawaii and Puerto Rico.