Hedychium coronarium

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Distribution Map: Based on vouchered plant specimens only. View county names by placing the mouse cursor over a particular county.

Species Distribution Map
Family:ZINGIBERACEAE
Species:Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig
Common Name:White Ginger Lily
Habitat:**
Associated Ecological Communities:**
Growth Habit:Herb
Duration:Perennial
Category:Vascular
USDA Symbol:HECO11
Plant Notes:White Ginger Lily is an introduced herbaceous perennial in the Ginger family (Zingiberaceae). It is listed as native from India through South Asia, but its original natural range is uncertain due to a long history of cultivation. White Ginger Lily is frequently grown in gardens in the warmer parts of the state and has been collected as an escape in several counties in southwest Alabama. White Ginger Lily occurs along streams, in swamps, and in wet roadside ditches. It is a perennial from a thick rhizome. The rhizomes are brittle and tan in color on the outside and white on the inside. Each rhizome gives rise to one or more pseudostems. These are not true stems, but result from the wrapped bases of the leaves. The pseudostems are from 3-10 feet in height. Leaves are alternate along the pseudostem and two-ranked. Leaf blades are oblanceolate to elliptic in outline, glabrous, with entire margins. Flowers are produced in a dense terminal cone-like inflorescence. Each large green bract of the inflorescence subtends 1-6 flowers that open one at a time. The flowers are white in color and perfect. The lower portion of the corolla is tubular and the upper portion is divided into three lobes. Each flower has four petaloid staminodes and one functional stamen. The fruit is a capsule with several seed. The seed are covered by a fleshy orange-red aril. Flowers are very fragrant. White Ginger Lily is available from many nurseries growing “tropical” plants. They prefer a semi-shaded location with a loamy soil and abundant moisture. White Ginger Lily is the national flower of Cuba. It is listed as an invasive species in Brazil, Kenya, South Africa, and Hawaii. The sweet-scented flowers are popular in leis. The rhizomes have a spicy flavor and are sometimes eaten.--A. Diamond
Taxonomic Notes:**
Status:Not Native
References:**
Specimen: View specimen details in the Alabama Herbarium Consortium Specimen Database

** Not applicable or data not available.

Classification

FamilyZINGIBERACEAE - Ginger family
Genus Hedychium
Species Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig - White Ginger Lily

Citation

Citation Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig, Observ. Bot. [Retzius] 3: 73–74. 1783.
Basionym: **
Type: **

** Not applicable or data not available.

Synonyms

SynonymFull CitationBasionymType
Gandasulium coronarium Gandasulium coronarium (J. Koenig) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 1: 690. 1891.Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig 1783. 
Gandasulium lingulatum Gandasulium lingulatum (Hasskarl) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 690. 1891.Hedychium lingulatum Hasskarl 1848. 
Hedychium coronarium var. maximum Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig, var. maximum Eichler ex O. Petersen, in Martius, Fl. Bras. 3(3): 37, t. 10(1). 1890. BRAZIL
Hedychium lingulatum Hedychium lingulatum Hasskarl, Pl. Jav. Rar. 135. 1848.  

Specimens and Distribution

This species has been reported in the following counties by the herbaria listed. An overview of the individual specimens are provided in the table that follows. Click on the accession number to view details; click on column headers to sort; choose a county or herbaria to filter the specimen data.

Counties included on distribution map: Baldwin, Conecuh, Crenshaw, Escambia, Lee

Counties represented by specimen data listed below:

Herbaria represented by specimen data listed below: ALNHS, AMAL, TROY, USAM, UWAL

Range of years during which specimens were collected: -

Barcode / Accession No. County Coll. Date Collector &
Collection No.		 Herbarium &
Herbarium Name Used		 Image
UWAL0045660 Baldwin 03 Oct 2018 Horne, Howard E.
4677		 UWAL
Hedychium coronarium J. Konig
TROY000036024 Conecuh 20 Oct 2012 Diamond, Alvin R.
23526		 TROY
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
AMAL00015292 Baldwin 18 Jul 2007 Spaulding, Daniel D.
12700		 AMAL
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
USAM000015658 Baldwin 04 Sep 1980 LeLong, Michel G.
11452		 USAM
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
UWAL0015099 Conecuh 20 Oct 2012 Diamond, Alvin R.
23526		 UWAL
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
TROY000033991 Crenshaw 04 Dec 2010 Diamond, Alvin R.
21718		 TROY
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
ALNHS00005386 Lee 15 OCT 2017 Barger, T. Wayne
SP#3429		 ALNHS
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
UWAL0016228 Escambia 27 Oct 2013 Diamond, Alvin R.
24672		 UWAL
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
UWAL0010411 Crenshaw 04 Dec 2010 Diamond, Alvin R.
21718		 UWAL
Hedychium coronarium Koenig
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