Costus igneus

• Interesting Facts
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Interesting Facts

Description

Family Costaceae

Herbs perennial , terrestrial , not aromatic , with fleshy rhizomes. Stems usually simple , often long, terete , sometimes spirally contorted, leafy; secondary branches (if present) breaking through leaf sheaths . Leaves spirally arranged , simple, those toward base of stem usually bladeless; leaf sheath tubular , closed ; ligule present; petiole short; leaf blade narrowly to broadly elliptic , rolled longitudinally in bud, glabrous or hairy , margin entire. Inflorescence a conelike spike, terminal on leafy shoots or on separate, short, leafless shoots arising from rhizomes; bracts imbricate, with linear , nectariferous callus below apex, 1- or 2-flowered; bracteoles tubular or folded. Flowers bisexual , epigynous , zygomorphic. Calyx tubular, 2- or 3-lobed or -toothed. Corolla proximally tubular, distally 3-lobed; lobes unequal, imbricate in bud. Staminodes 5, united into a labellum equaling or much longer than corolla, often 3-lobed with crisped margin, never deeply lobed . Fertile stamen 1; filament broad; anther borne below apex of filament or at apex with a connective crest , introrse , dehiscing by longitudinal slits. Ovary inferior, 2- or 3-loculed; ovules many per locule; placentation axile . Developed style 1, filiform , usually enclosed between anther locules; stigma with or without abaxial appendage . Stylodes 2, reduced to septal, hollow nectaries at apex of ovary, or absent. Fruit a capsule, 2- or 3-valved and dehiscing loculicidally, or indehiscent and breaking up irregularly, apex with persistent calyx. Seeds numerous , black, arillate .

Four genera and ca. 120 species: pantropical with center of diversity in America; one genus and five species (two endemic) in China.[1]

Genus Costus

Rhizomes horizontal, tuberous . Stems sometimes branched, usually spirally twisted, leafy, rarely plants stemless. Leaf blade oblong to lanceolate. Inflorescences terminal or lateral on separate, short, leafless shoots arising from rhizomes, conical , densely many flowered; bracts imbricate, 1- or 2-flowered. Calyx 3-lobed or -toothed at apex. Corolla tube equaling or longer than calyx. Labellum obovate , large, margin incurved . Stamen petaloid ; anther locules linear . Ovary 3-loculed; ovules many per locule, superposed . Style filiform ; stigma funnelform . Stylodes absent. Capsule subglobose or ovoid , woody. Seeds many, black; aril lacerate .

About 90 species: tropical and subtropical regions; five species (two endemic) in China.[2]

Taxonomy

Notes

Publishing author : N.E.Br. Publication : Ill. Hort. xxxi. (1884) 25. t. 511

Similar Species

Members of the genus Costus

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 17 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

C. barbatus (Red Tower Ginger) · C. curvibracteatus (Dwarf Orange Ginger) · C. curvibracteatus 'Green Mountain' (Dwarf Orange Ginger) · C. cuspidatus (Fiery Costus) · C. erythrophyllus (Blood Red Spiral Costus) · C. guanaiensis (Cana De India) · C. guanaiensis Rusby var. macrostrobilus (K.Schum.) Maas (Cana De India) · C. guanaiensis var. macrostrobilus (Cana De India) · C. malortieanus (Spiral Ginger) · C. osae (Costus) · C. pulverulentus (Spiral Ginger) · C. speciosus (Canereed) · C. speciosus 'Foster Variegated' (Variegated Crepe Ginger) · C. speciosus 'Variegatus' (Cane Reed) · C. spicatus (Costus) · C. spiralis (Spiral Ginger) · C. woodsonii (Dwarf French Kiss)

More Info

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Further Reading

• A handbook of tropical gardening and planting, with special reference to Ceylon, by H. F. Macmillan. .. Colombo, H.W. Cave & co., 1914. url p. 389.
• Garden and forest; a journal of horticulture, landscape art and forestry. New York: The Garden and forest publishing co., 1888-97. url , , p. 397, p. 404, p. 526, p. 546.
• Hand-list of tender momocotyledons, excluding Orchideae, cultivated in the Royal Gardens, Kew. London, Printed for H. M. S. O., by Eyre and Spottiswoode, 1897. url p. 25.
• Hand-list of tender monocotyledons, excluding Orchideae, cultivated in the Royal Gardens, Kew. 1897. LondonPrinted for H.M. Stationery Off. by Eyre and Spottiswoode1897 url p. 25.
• Journal of the New York Botanical Garden. 13 1912 Lancaster, Pa.: Published for the Garden by the New Era Printing Co., 1900- url p. 79.
• Nicholson, G. The illustrated dictionary of gardening: a practical and scientific encyclopædia of horticulture for gardeners and botanists /edited by George Nicholson; assisted by J.W.H. Trail. .. and J. Garrett. .. 9 1884 London: L.U. Gill, [1884]-88. url p. 386, p. 441.
• Notes from the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh. 1 1900 - 19 Edinburgh: H. M. Stationery Off. url p. 37.
• The American florist: a weekly journal for the trade. Chicago: American Florist Company, [1885-1931] url p. 839.
• The Florists' exchange: a weekly medium of interchange for florists, nurserymen, seedsmen and the trade in general. New York, N.Y.: [A.T. De la Mare Ptg. and Pub. Co., url p. 197.
• The Garden: an illustrated weekly journal of gardening in all its branches. London: [s.n., url , , , , , , , , , , p. 101, p. 133, p. 141, p. 167, p. 168, p. 199, p. 213, p. 221, p. 258, p. 30, p. 337, p. 339, p. 441, p. 455, p. 484, p. 517, p. 593, p. 66, p. 96.
• The Gardeners' chronicle: a weekly illustrated journal of horticulture and allied subjects. London: [Gardeners Chronicle], 1874-1955. url , , , , , , p. 209, p. 214, p. 214, p. 219, p. 236, p. 278, p. 281, p. 336, p. 385, p. 712, p. 756.
• The Illustrated dictionary of gardening: a practical and scientific encyclopaedia of horticulture for gardeners and botanists / edited by George Nicholson. ..; assisted by J.W.H. Trail. .. and J. Garrett. ... London: L. Upcott Gill; 1887-1889. url p. 377, p. 386, p. 441.
• Tsai Hsi-tao & Tong Shao-quan. 1981. Zingiberaceae subfam. Costoideae. In: Wu Te-lin, ed., Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 16(2): 148--152.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 9388158
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 15392217
• Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:796310-1
• International Plant Names Index (IPNI) ID: 796310-1
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 729217

Footnotes

1. Delin Wu & Kai Larsen "Costaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 24 Page 320. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
2. "Costus". in Flora of China Vol. 24 Page 320. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.