Hedychium coronarium

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Hedychium
Hedychium coronarium
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Zingiberales Order: Liliopsida Family: Zingiberaceae Genus: Hedychium Species: H. coronarium
Binomial name
Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig

White ginger lily (Hedychium coronarium) It's original from the Himalayas region of Nepal and India where is known as Dolan champa दोलन चम्पा (Hindi), Takhellei angouba (Manipuri), Sontaka (Marathi), Suruli Sugandhi (Kannada). The species was introduced by settlers in Hawaii. The native Hawaiians refer to white ginger as 'Awapuhi', using the juice of mature seed head as a hair and skin treatment.

In Brazil it is very common and considered to be an invasive weed. It was introduced in the era of slavery, brought to the country by African slaves who used its leaves as mattresses.

In Cuba it is the National Flower, known as "Flor de Mariposa" literally "Butterfly Flower", due to its similarity with a flying white butterfly. This particular species is incredibly fragrant and women used to garnish themselves with these flowers in Spanish colonial times. Because the intricate structure of the inflorescence the ladies hid and carried secret messages important to the independence cause inside it. It is said that a guajiro's (farmer's) house is not complete without a white ginger in its garden. Today the plant has gone wild in the cool rainy mountains in Sierra del Rosario, Pinar del Rio Province in the west, Escambray Mountains in the center of the island and in Sierra Maestra in the very west of it.

Its fragrance can be extracted by "enfleurage".

[edit] References

http://www.flowersofindia.net/catalog/slides/Butterfly%20Ginger%20Lily.html http://www.plantoftheweek.org/week086.shtml http://www.canoeplants.com/awapuhi.html