Costus erythrocoryne
K. Schum.
Red spiral costus
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Dave Skinner, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Dave Skinner
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Dave Skinner, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Dave Skinner, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Description
A herb. It grows 4 m tall. It has rhizomes. The stems are slightly woody at the base. They are branched and twisted in spirals. The leaves are oblong with a rounded base and tapering to the tip. The edges are hairy. They are smooth and shiny on both surfaces. The flowers are in oval heads. There are shiny red bracts. The flowers are tube shaped and 5 cm long. They are yellow with an orange throat. The fruit is a round capsule. There are many black seeds.
Edible Uses
The fruit is sucked for its spicy juice.
Traditional Uses
The fruit are sucked for their spicy juice.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Distribution
It is a tropical plant. It grows in rainforests up to 1,500 m above sea level.
Where It Grows
Amazon, Asia, Australia, Colombia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Peru, SE Asia, South America*,
Cultivation
Plants can be grown from cuttings and division of the rhizome.
Also Known As
Gone-quemo, Kostus merah spiral
References (3)
- Kermath, B. M., et al, 2014, Food Plants in the Americas: A survey of the domesticated, cultivated and wild plants used for Human food in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. On line draft. p 268
- Kew Plants of the World On line
- Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 1093
