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Hedychium coronarium 'Elizabeth'

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Hedychium coronarium 'Elizabeth'

Family Name: Zingiberaceae
Common Name: Elisabeth Ginger Lily

Hedychium coronarium 'Elisabeth' is a herbaceous perennial hybrid with fragrant, salmon, butterfly-like flowers. This is one of the many hybrids bred by Tom Wood.

Name

Family Name
Genus Epithet
Species Epithet
Infraspecific Epithet
Common Names
Comments
Species Summary

Classifications and Characteristics

Plant Division Angiosperms (Flowering Seed Plants) (Monocotyledon)
Plant Growth Form Herbaceous Plant
Lifespan (in Singapore) Perennial
Mode of Nutrition Autotrophic

Biogeography

Native Distribution Of horticultural origin
Preferred Climate Zone Tropical, Sub-Tropical / Monsoonal
Local Conservation Status Non-native (Horticultural / Cultivated Only)

Description and Ethnobotany

Growth Form It is a rhizomatous, herbaceous perennial that grows upright about 1 - 2.5 m tall.
Foliage The leaves are green, smooth, glossy, oblong to narrow-lanceolate, up to 30 - 60 cm long and 10 - 15 cm wide. The leaves are arranged alternately in two ranks, i.e. distichously.
Stems The erect aboveground 'stems' are pseudostems, a shoot formed from a series of leaf sheaths tightly wrapped around one another, and can reach 1.5 - 2 m tall. The true stems are underground ginger-like rhizomes (thick, horizontal modified stems).
Flowers The inflorescence is a thryse, with each green bract subtending clusters of 2 - 3 butterfly-like flowers. What appear to be petals on the flowers are staminodes (sterile stamens), and the actual petals are fused into a corolla tube ending in three dangling, narrow lobes. The largest staminode is a fused pair called a lip. The flowers are peach to salmon-coloured and fragrant.
Cultivation This Tom Wood hybrid does well in fertile, well-drained, organic-rich soil and grows in bright, direct or indirect sunlight or under dappled shade. It can be propagated by division via rhizomes.
Etymology The genus Hedychium is derived from Ancient Greek, hedys "sweet" and chios "snow", referring to the white flowers of the type specimen, H. coronarium.

Landscaping Features

Desirable Plant Features Ornamental Flowers
Landscape Uses General, Parks & Gardens, Flowerbed / Border
Thematic Landscaping Fragrant / Aromatherapy Garden

Plant Care and Propagation

Light Preference Full Sun, Semi-Shade
Water Preference Moderate Water
Plant Growth Rate Fast to Moderate
Rootzone Tolerance Moist Soils, Well-Drained Soils
Pest(s) Chewing Insects
Propagation Method Division, Storage Organ (Rhizome)

Foliar

Foliage Retention Evergreen
Mature Foliage Colour(s) Green
Foliar Modification Flower/Fruit Bract
Foliar Type Simple / Unifoliate
Foliar Arrangement Along Stem Alternate
Foliar Attachment to Stem Petiolate
Foliar Shape(s) Non-Palm Foliage (Lanceolate, Oblong)
Foliar Venation Pinnate / Net
Foliar Margin Entire
Foliar Apex - Tip Acuminate
Foliar Base Cuneate
Leaf Area Index (LAI) for Green Plot Ratio 3.5 (Shrub & Groundcover - Monocot)

Non - Foliar and Storage

Stem Type & Modification Herbaceous, Pseudostem
Root Type Underground (Fibrous Root)
Specialised Storage Organ(s) Underground (Rhizome)

Floral (Angiosperm)

Flower & Plant Sexuality Bisexual Flowers
Flower Colour(s) Pink
Flower Texture(s) Thin
Flower Grouping Cluster / Inflorescence
Flower Location Terminal
Flower Symmetry Bilateral
Inflorescence Type Thryse
Ovary Position Inferior / Epipgynous
Flowering Habit Polycarpic

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Master ID 32302
Species ID 6710
Flora Disclaimer The information in this website has been compiled from reliable sources, such as reference works on medicinal plants. It is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment and NParks does not purport to provide any medical advice. Readers should always consult his/her physician before using or consuming a plant for medicinal purposes.
Species record last updated on: 11 April 2025.
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