Cheilocostus speciosus (crepe ginger, "Ohozakiayame")

Japanese name: オオホザキアヤメ （大穂咲菖蒲）
Scientific name: Cheilocostus speciosus

[Overview]
An evergreen perennial 3 m tall.
It has rhizomes.
The stem is fleshy and extends in a slightly spiral manner.
The leaves are simple and spirally alternate, narrowly elliptic, 12–25 cm long and 6–7 cm wide, and thick.
The underside of the leaves is covered with velvety white hairs.
The leaf margins are entire.
The leaf sheaths are tinged with red.
A spike 12 cm long emerges at the stem tip, bearing flowers in groups of 1–3, each enclosed in a red-colored bract.
The flowers are white, 7–8 cm across, with a yellow center.
The petals are short and trumpet-shaped, and one staminode develops large and petal-like, forming a lip.
The fruit is a capsule.

[Uses]
The rhizomes are used medicinally and as food.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed, by division, or by cuttings.
A temperature of 15°C or higher is needed to overwinter.
It prefers sun to partial shade, a hot and humid environment, and fertile acidic soil that is well drained and moisture-retentive.
From spring to autumn, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; in winter, keep it on the dry side.
Apply liquid fertilizer from spring to autumn.
Spider mites can occur.

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