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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.

Full Sun

Semi Shade

Moderate Water

Ornamental Flowers

Underground Storage Organ

Herbaceous Plant

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	Thyrse
Ovary Position	Inferior / Epipgynous
Flowering Habit	Polycarpic

Image Repository

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Others

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.