Common name: Torch Ginger, Torch lily
Botanical name: Etlingera elatior Family: Zingiberaceae (ginger family)
Synonyms: Alpinia elatior
The torch ginger is
believed native to Indonesia. The plant is
now grown in many tropical locations both for the extravagant 'flowers' and
for food. In Malaysia, it is called kantan. The peduncles (stems) of the
inflorescence are chopped and added to laksa pots (various curries or soups
made with rice noodles)
The spectacular inflorescence rises from the rhizome to a height of
2 ft to more than a 3 ft. The individual
flowers will appear from between the pinecone-like scales above the waxy
bracts. The leaves grow in ranks from separate stalks along the rhizome. The
leafy stalks are evergreen and get 15 to 20 feet tall.
Torch ginger has had numerous generic designations through the years: Alpinia,
Phaeomoria, Nicolaia, and Elettaria. The taxonomy was tangled and confusing.
And it was believed the genus contained only a handful of species.
In the 1980s, Rosemary Margaret Smith of the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh
tackled the gingers and determined this plant belonged to Etlingera, a genus
first described in 1792 by Paul Dietrich Giseke. Since then, Axel Dalberg
Poulsen of the National Herbarium of the Netherlands has dedicated his studies
to these glorious plants. He has discovered there are at least 70 species,
many not yet described, spread from India to the Pacific Islands.
| Photographed at International Flower Expo-2006, Delhi. |
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