Hedychium facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hedychium |
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| Hedychium coronarium | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Zingiberales |
| Family: | Zingiberaceae |
| Subfamily: | Zingiberoideae |
| Tribe: | Zingibereae |
| Genus: | Hedychium J.Koenig |
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Hedychium is a group of beautiful flowering plants, often called ginger lilies or garland flowers. They belong to the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. These plants originally come from places with light forests in Asia, like India and Southeast Asia. There are about 70 to 80 different kinds, or species, of Hedychium. Some of these plants have spread to other parts of the world. In some places, they are even considered invasive, meaning they grow too much and can harm local plants.
The name Hedychium comes from two old Greek words. Hedys means "sweet," and chios means "snow." This name was chosen because of the sweet-smelling white flowers of one specific type, H. coronarium.
Hedychium plants are rhizomatous perennials. This means they grow from underground stems called rhizomes and come back year after year. They usually grow between 120 and 180 centimeters (about 4 to 6 feet) tall. Many people grow these plants in their gardens because of their interesting leaves and lovely, fragrant flowers. Their flowers can be white, yellow, or orange.
Gardeners have created many special types, called cultivars, for gardens. One popular type, 'Tara', has even won an award called the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. These plants can handle cold weather down to about -10°C (14°F). But they need a protected spot and a thick layer of mulch in winter to stay healthy.
Contents
Different Types of Hedychium
There are many different species of Hedychium. Here are some of them:
- Hedychium aureum
- Hedychium chingmeianum
- Hedychium chrysoleucum - also known as gold spot ginger lily
- Hedychium coccineum
- Hedychium coronarium
- Hedychium deceptum
- Hedychium densiflorum
- Hedychium elatum
- Hedychium ellipticum - sometimes called shaving brush ginger
- Hedychium flavum
- Hedychium flavescens
- Hedychium forrestii
- Hedychium gardnerianum
- Hedychium gomezianum
- Hedychium gracile - also known as Salmon ginger lily
- Hedychium greenii
- Hedychium griersonianum
- Hedychium griffithianum
- Hedychium larsenii
- Hedychium longipedunculatum
- Hedychium marginatum
- Hedychium nagamiense
- Hedychium raoii
- Hedychium samuiense
- Hedychium spicatum - called kapur kachari in Hindi
- Hedychium stenopetalum
- Hedychium thyrsiforme
- Hedychium urophyllum
- Hedychium villosum
- Hedychium wardii
- Hedychium ziroense
How Scientists Study Hedychium
Scientists study how different Hedychium species are related to each other. In 2000, a scientist named Tom Wood and his team published the first study showing the "family tree" of 29 different Hedychium types. This helps us understand their history and connections.
Reproduction of Hedychium
Hedychium plants can make new plants in a few ways. They can grow from their underground stems, called rhizomes. They can also grow from small plantlets called bulbils that form on the plant. Some Hedychium species can even start growing new plants while the seeds are still attached to the parent plant. This is a special way of reproduction called vivipary.
See also
In Spanish: Hedychium para niños
- List of plants known as lily
