Red torch Ginger, Philippine waxflower
Etlingera elatior

Family: Zingiberaceae

What it is like

An erect ginger family herb. A herb which keeps growing from year to year. The rhizome is creeping. The false stem is robust. They are closely grouped and can be 5 m high. The leaves are arranged in two vertical rows. The leaf stalk is short. The leaf stalk is 3-4 cm long. The leaf blade is sword shaped and 80 cm long by 18 cm wide. The flowers are on a leafless shoot. The flower stalk is raised well above the ground. It can be 0.8-1.5 m tall. The flower clusters are surrounded by large coloured bracts. Then narrow sterile bracts surround each flower. The flower is pink to red but can also be white. The fruiting head is greenish or reddish. It is round and 2.5 cm across. The fruit are oval. There are many seeds which are black.

There are about 60-70 Etlingera species.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It suits places with a seasonally moist and dry climate or a continuously moist climate. It needs a fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil. It suits bright shade. In China it is cultivated as an ornament. It suits hardiness zones 10-12. At MARDI. In Yunnan. In the Cairns Botanical Gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Asia, Australia, Caribbean, Central America, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ghana, Hawaii, Honduras, Indochina, Indonesia, Malaysia (country/location of origin), Marquesas, Mauritius, Mexico, Myanmar, North America, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Puerto Rico, SE Asia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, USA, West Africa, West Indies

How it is used for food

The flowers have a spicy flavour. They taste similar to Vietnamese mint. The flowers are chopped and served raw as a vegetable. The unopened flower buds are eaten in Asia. They are used to flavour curries. The young shoots and flowers are eaten raw. The flowers can also be cut into small pieces and mixed with cooked dishes and curries. The fruit are sour and mixed with other vegetables for flavouring. The ripe seeds are eaten uncooked.

The flowers are sold in markets. It is cultivated.

Edible parts

Flower bud, shoots, leaves, seeds, vegetable, flavouring, fruit

How it is grown

Plants can be grown by seed or division. It can be grown from sections of the rhizome that have formed shoots. They need to be spaced 1-2 m apart.

Its other names

Local names

Bua salleh, Bunga kantan, Chumbrang, Combrang, Dalaa, Ginger flower, Honje, Huo ju jiang, Kaalaa, Kantan, Kecala, Kechala, Kechombrang, Kechumbrang, Kecombrang, Kelu, Kimcong, Kimcuang, Miebumienai, Ondje, Petikala, Plastic-pan, Potok, Sambuang, Tepus kampong, Ubud udat

Synonyms

Alpinia latior Jack; Alpinia speciosa (Blume) D.Dietrich (1839) not (Wendland) K.Schumann (1893); Alpinia magnifica Roscoe; Amomum magnificum (Roscoe) Benth. & Hook.f. ex B. D. Jacks.; Elettaria speciosa Blume; Nicolaia elatior (Jack) Horaninow; Nicolaia speciosa (Blume) Horaninow; Phaeomeria speciosa (Blume) Koorders; Phaeomeria magnifica K.Schum.; Phaeomeria speciosa Koord.; and others