Costus speciosus – Crepe Ginger

Costus speciosus - Crepe Ginger, Canereed, Crape Ginger, Malay Ginger (flowers)

Costus speciosus - Crepe Ginger, Canereed, Crape Ginger, Malay Ginger

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Costus speciosus

Synonym: Cheilocostus speciosus

Common Names: Crepe Ginger, Canereed, Crape Ginger, Malay Ginger

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial

Growth Habit: Herb/Forb

Hawaii Native Status: Introduced. This naturalized ornamental garden plant is native to Malaysia.

Flower Color: White

Height: Up to 10 feet (3 m) tall

Description: The showy flowers emerge from between dark red to reddish purple bracts on pinecone-shaped, terminal inflorescences. The individual flowers are trumpet-shaped, up to 4 inches (10 cm) across, and have 3 fused, crinkled, crepe paper-like, white petals and a smaller, yellow, curved, petal-like stamen. The flowers are followed by round, 2/3 inch (1.5 cm) in diameter, red seed capsules containing black seeds and white flesh. The leaves are green, alternate, spirally arranged, and have leaf blades that are narrowly elliptic to oblanceolate in shape. The cane-like stems emerge from underground rhizomes and are upright, unbranched, and green to dark red in color.

Here in Hawaii, Crepe Ginger grows at the edge of moist, shaded to partly shaded forests at lower elevations.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Liliopsida – Monocotyledons
Subclass: Zingiberidae
Order: Zingiberales
Family: Costaceae – Costus family
Genus: Costus L. – costus
Species: Costus speciosus (J. Koenig) Sm. – canereed

More About This Plant

Hawaii County Distribution Map