
Zingiberaceae FAMILY
Alpinia caerulea
Alpinia caerulea
Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
0/5
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
HabitPerennial
Growth—
Prefers a semi-shady position[1]. Grows best in a humus-rich soil[1]. The fruit usually hangs on the plant for several months[1].
Propagation
Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe[2]. Plants are easy to grow from seed, though somewhat prone to damping off[1]. Division of the rhizome[1]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-19. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Alpinia+caerulea>
Pollinators
Data unavailable
References
- [1]Australian Rainforest Plants Volumes 1 - 6 — Nicholson N. & H. · Terania Rainforest Publishing; New South Wales. · 2007 · ISBN 9-78095894-3628 ↩︎Beautiful set of booklets with a terse description of over 600 species and their habitat, often including some of their uses and notes on their cultivation, plus at least one, excellent photograph.
- [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
- [3]Flora of New South Wales — http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/floraonline.htm ↩︎An on-line resource giving a brief botanical description of all the native plants of New South Wales, their habitat and range, together with diagrams and photographs of the plants.
- [4]Wild Food in Australia. — Cribb. A. B. and J. W. · Fontana · 1976 · ISBN 0-00-634436-4 ↩︎A very good pocket guide.
- [5]Flora of Australia — http://www.anbg.gov.au/abrs/abif/flora/ ↩︎The full information from the Flora of Australia - on-line. An excellent resource.
- [6]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
- [7]Wild Food Plants of Australia. — Low. T. · Angus and Robertson. · 1989 · ISBN 0-207-14383-8 ↩︎Well presented, clear information and good photographs. An interesting read for the casual reader as well as the enthusiast