Tapeinochilos ananassae

(Hasskarl) K. Schumann

Backscratcher, Pineapple ginger, Giant spiral ginger, Indonesian wax ginger

Costaceae Edible: Seeds 281 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Tapeinochilos ananassae, also known as backscratcher ginger, torch ginger, or (in Hawaii) Indonesian wax ginger, is an evergreen herb in the family Costaceae described as a species in 1866. It is native to New Guinea, the Indonesian province of Maluku, and the Australian state of Queensland. It is a perennial growing up to 2.4 m (8 ft) tall and a spread of up to 2.1 m (7 ft). The inflorescence is a cylindrical array of stiff, bright red bracts enclosing emergent yellow flowers.

Description

A herb which keeps growing from year to year. It has underground stems. It grows 1.3-2.6 m high. It spreads 0.6-0.9 m wide. The branches are widely spaced in a spiral. The leaves are sword shaped. The flowers are tube shaped. They are orange-yellow. The bracts are pointed and waxy red. They are on a separate leafy stalk.

Edible Uses

The seeds are edible.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It grows well in moist and humid locations. It needs fertile, organically-rich, well-drained soil. It needs bright filtered sunlight. In Cairns Botanical Gardens. It suits hardiness zones 11-12.

Where It Grows

Asia, Australia, Hawaii, Indonesia*, Malaysia, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, SE Asia, USA,

Notes

There are 15-20 Tapeinochilos species.

Synonyms

Costus ananassae Hassk.Costus pungens Teijsm. & Binn.Tapeinochilos australis K. Schum.Tapeinochilos pungens (Teijsm. & Binn.) Miq.Tapeinochilos queenslandiae (F. M. Bailey) K. Schum.Tapeinochilosteysmannianus Warb.

Also Known As

Bunga kasturi

References (10)

Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 27:349. 1899
Cribb, A.B. & J.W., 1976, Wild Food in Australia, Fontana. p 103
Cundall, P., (ed.), 2004, Gardening Australia: flora: the gardener's bible. ABC Books. p 1400
Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 297
Hinton, B & B., 1982, A Wilderness in Bloom. Wildflowers of tropical Australia. p 24 (As Tapeinochilos queenslandiae)

Show all 10 references

Jones D, L, 1986, Ornamental Rainforest Plants in Australia, Reed Books, p 268
Llamas, K.A., 2003, Tropical Flowering Plants. Timber Press. p 372
Staples, G.W. and Herbst, D.R., 2005, A tropical Garden Flora. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. p 654 (Drawing)
Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 1138 (Also as Tapeinochilos pungens)
Townsend, K., 1994, Across the Top. Gardening with Australian Plants in the tropics. Society for Growing Australian Plants, Townsville Branch Inc. p