Jim’s Plant of the Month:
This
month, Jim graciously stepped aside to allow me to write a column on my
favorite subject. As Jim is passionate about passiflora, so I am
passionate about the
hedychium family of gingers, also known as butterfly ginger.
Butterfly gingers grow from rhizomes
- thick root systems planted just below the surface of earth. The
rhizomes send up leafy shoots above the ground, while spreading
prolifically across the bed. Hedychium have symmetrical sets of leaves
on a thick stalk, growing straight up for an average of 3 – 5 feet,
ending in a flower spike. In this way they are similar to most
varieties of lily, hence they are often called ginger lilies.
Hedychium have a poor reputation in Central America since they have
been known to clog the streams of rain forests, like water hyacinths can
here, so they are treated as weeds.
The most common hedychium is the white butterfly ginger
hedychium coronarium.
This is a small variety, growing in full clusters about 3-5 feet tall.
The bud appears on the top of each stalk, shaped like a pine cone, which
sends out stark white butterfly shaped flowers. Usually 2-6 flowers
appear from the cone at a time, which lasts for a day or two. The
flowers continue to appear for several weeks from the same cones.
White butterfly ginger is highly perfumed, giving off a sweet smell
reminiscent of gardenias.
Hedychium flavum
is a yellow variation of the white butterfly, which grows on taller,
much thicker stalks. It can easily reach heights of 5 feet, with
flower stalks of up to a foot long. The individual flowers are 3”- 4”
in diameter. The flower stalk looks a little different from the white
version since it opens into a spiked cone.
Kahili gingers are so
named because they tend to bloom all at once, in a cluster reminiscent
of the feathered Kahili standards used in tribal celebrations in Hawaii
and Polynesia. The flowers are smaller, only 1” – 2” in diameter, and
produce more blooms at one time in a tight cluster. Kahili gingers
tend to be less fragrant than the white butterfly, but continue to send
out
fresh
blossoms every other day to replace wilting ones. The flower stalk
continues to bloom for about 2 weeks. These varieties have been
hybridized to get greater variety of color and fragrance, as well as
more hardy plants. The color range is from yellow, to orange, pink and
now red, with such exotic names as hedychium Elizabeth and hedychium
Kahili Ann.
Gingers
like wet feet and full sun. They are fast growers, and the stalks die
once they have bloomed. I cut mine back at the end of November, and
they start sending up fresh shoots in January. Gingers will not bloom
from last year’s foliage, so it is necessary to cut back any that have
not bloomed once the blooming has ceased. They are hardy throughout
the US, and have been known to grow throughout the Pacific NW, since
they are dormant through the winter.
Club officer contact
President: Jim Nevers, president@rakesandbladesfl.com
Vice President: Ann Allen, vicepres@rakesandbladesfl.com
Treasurer: Gary Raush, treasurer@rakesandbladesfl.com
Secretary: Bruce Bates, secretary@rakesandbladesfl.com
Newsletter: Bryan Hopper, newsletter@rakesandbladesfl.com
Photographer: Brad Hissing, photos@rakesandbladesfl.com
Raffleator: Kevin Ritter, raffles@rakesandbladesfl.com
Social Director: Michael Argrew, socialdirector@rakesandbladesfl.com
Program Coordinator: Brian Cahill, programs@rakesandbladesfl.com
Host Coordinators: Ann Allen, Marty Volpe, hosting@rakesandbladesfl.com
Potluck Committee:
Marty Volpe, Scott Hoffman, Dani Skrzypek, Jeffrey Davis
potluck@rakesandbladesfl.com
