Characteristics
A herb. It grows 0.5-1 m tall. There are 1 or 2 leaves near the base. The leaf sheath is 3-50 cm long. There is one leaf on the stem. This leaf sheath is 3-5 cm long. The leaf stalk is 7.5-60 cm long. The leaf blade is oval and 25-55 cm long by 8-20 cm wide. They are thinly leathery. The base is rounded and it tapers to the tip. The flower arrangement does not has a stalk. It is made up of 4 or 5 or more small spikes. These are round and 308 cm across. There are 2 flowers per bract. They are white or yellowish. The fruit is oblong and about 1.2 cm across. It has a thin covering. There is 1 seed and it is oval and 1 cm across. It is surrounded by a red seed coat.
| Life form |
perennial
|
| Growth form |
herb
|
| Growth support |
free-standing
|
| Foliage retention |
-
|
| Sexuality |
hermaphrodite
|
| Pollination |
-
|
| Spread |
-
|
| Mature width (meter) |
-
|
| Mature height (meter) |
1.0 - 2.0
|
| Root system |
-
|
| Rooting depth (meter) |
-
|
| Root diameter (meter) |
-
|
| Flower color |
|
| Blooming months |
-
|
| Fruit color |
-
|
| Fruiting months |
| Jan | Feb | Mar | | Apr | May | Jun | | Jul | Aug | Sep | | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|
| Nitrogen fixer |
-
|
| Photosynthetic pathway |
-
|
Environment
It is a tropical plant. It grows in wet, shady places. In China it is in forests and along valleys from sea level to 1500 m altitude in S China.
| Light |
-
|
| Soil humidity |
-
|
| Soil texture |
-
|
| Soil acidity |
-
|
| Soil nutriment |
-
|
| Hardiness (USDA) |
|
Usage
The leaves are used to wrap food to give it flavour. (The leaves are not eaten). The flower buds are used to make vinegar. The rhizome is boiled and eaten.
Cultivation
Plants can be grown from seeds.
| Mode |
seedlings
|
| Germination duration (days) |
-
|
| Germination temperacture (C°) |
-
|
| Germination luminosity |
-
|
| Germination treatment |
-
|
| Minimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Optimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Size |
-
|
| Vigor |
-
|
| Productivity |
-
|
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