Zingiberaceae FAMILY

Renealmia aromatica

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Renealmia aromatica is a robust, perennial herbaceous plant, usually producing clumps of sterile stems 1 - 3 metres tall, exceptionally to 4 metres, from a rhizomatous rootstock. The plant also produces smaller, flowering stems 15 - 30cm tall[ 331 Title Flora of Guatemala Publication Author Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark Website http://www.archive.org/ Publisher Year 1946 - 1976 ISBN Description A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/ ]. The fruits are sometimes gathered from the wild for local use as a flavouring in soups, and the plant also has minor local medicinal uses.

Habitat & Origin

Origintropical

Native RangeS. America - Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana; C. America - Panama to Mexico; Caribbean - Leeward & Windward Isles to Cuba.

HabitatOften abundant in wet mixed forests at elevations up to 1,500 metres in Guatemala[ 331 Title Flora of Guatemala Publication Author Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark Website http://www.archive.org/ Publisher Year 1946 - 1976 ISBN Description A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/ ]. Wet forests, where it sometimes forms small clumps or colonies[ 512 Title Flora of the Lancetilla Valley, Honduras. Publication Author Standley P.C. Website http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org Publisher Field Museum of Natural History; Chicago. Year 1931 ISBN Description Rather short on details at times, which is not surprising since so little information was available at the time. Still a useful flora. It can be downloaded from the Internet. ].