FSA contributions 11 : Zingiberaceae

Rhizomatous herbs; rhizome usually fleshy, sympodial, each element terminating in a leafy or flowering shoot. Leaf shoots with few to many blades, either arranged spirally and with tubular sheaths (Costoideae) or distichously arranged, sheaths then usually open on side opposite lamina (Zingiberoideae). Inflorescence occasionally surrounded by sterile bracts, terminal on leaf shoot or borne directly on rhizome at base of leaf shoot or remote from it. Flowers zygomorphic, her­ maphrodite or (rarely) unisexual, solitary in axils of bracts or in cincinni, with or without bracteoles. Calyx tubular, often unilaterally split. Corolla tube usually slender; petals 3, often subequal. Labellum: (anterior staminode) often large and showy; lateral staminodes usu­ ally present, either as conspicuous petaloid organs (Zingiberoideae/Hedychieae) or as small subulate teeth or swellings (Zingiberoideae/Alpineae). Fertile stamen one only; anther more or less sessile or with a distinct fil­ ament; thecae parallel or slightly divergent, connective sometimes developing into an appendage (anther crest). Ovary inferior, unilocular with parietal placentation or trilocular, or incompletely so with axile placentation; style filiform, upper part usually held between thecae; stigma usually expanded. Epigynous glands (stylodes) forming erect outgrowths on top of ovary in Zingi­ beroideae; in Costoideae, three septal nectary glands arise towards top of ovary. Fruit a dehiscent capsule or fleshy berry. Seeds arillate.

Rhizomatous herbs; rhizome usually fleshy, sympodial, each element terminating in a leafy or flowering shoot.L eaf shoots with few to many blades, either arranged spirally and with tubular sheaths (Costoideae) or distichously arranged, sheaths then usually open on side opposite lamina (Zingiberoideae).Inflorescence occasionally surrounded by sterile bracts, terminal on leaf shoot or borne directly on rhizome at base of leaf shoot or remote from it.Flowers zygomorphic, her maphrodite or (rarely) unisexual, solitary in axils of bracts or in cincinni, with or without bracteoles.Calyx tubular, often unilaterally split.Corolla tube usually slender; petals 3, often subequal.Labellum: (anterior staminode) often large and showy; lateral staminodes usu ally present, either as conspicuous petaloid organs (Zingiberoideae/Hedychieae) or as small subulate teeth or swellings (Zingiberoideae/Alpineae). Fertile stamen one only; anther more or less sessile or with a distinct fil ament; thecae parallel or slightly divergent, connective sometimes developing into an appendage (anther crest).Ovary inferior, unilocular with parietal placentation or trilocular, or incompletely so with axile placentation; style filiform, upper part usually held between thecae; stigma usually expanded.Epigynous glands (stylodes) forming erect outgrowths on top of ovary in Zingi beroideae; in Costoideae, three septal nectary glands arise towards top of ovary.Fruit a dehiscent capsule or fleshy berry.Seeds arillate.
Over 40 genera and about 1000 species occurring mainly in the tropics of the Old World but with some rep resentatives in South and Central America.Four genera, all belonging to the subfamily Zingiberoideae.are found in the African continent but only one, Siphonochilus (tribe Hedychieae), is native in the FSA area.Three species of Hedychium (tribe Hedychieae) and Alpinia zerumbet (tribe Alpineae) have become naturalised in cer tain areas.
The Zingiberaceae is notable for its spice plants and includes ginger, Zingiber officinale', cardamom.Elettaria cardamomunc, and turmeric, Curcuma longa.Cultivated races of Curcuma are common in the Indian markets of KwaZulu-Natal and are not infrequent in gardens; they are used medicinally or powder from the tubers is used as a cosmetic.Distributed from KwaZulu-Natal northwards to Ethiopia and the Nile lands and across the continent to Nigeria and the Gambia; also in equatorial West Africa.About 20 species have been described but the genus is badly in need of revision and the number is probably rather less.Two species are recorded from southern Africa.
The description of the female flower is taken from Wood & Franks (1911a).
Occurs in Northern Province.M pumalanga, Swaziland and KwaZulu-Natal (Figure 2).Widespread throughout tropical Africa.It seems likely that the species never occurred naturally in the Flora area but that it was introduced from tropical Africa and widely cultivated (Williams et al. 1996).In 19th century Natal.S. aethiopicus was often dug up and the tubers sold as horse medicine; nowadays it is found only in the vicini ty of Zulu dwellings, where it was presumably original ly planted.In traditionally Zulu practice the plant is used in the treatment of colds and chest complaints, to ward off snakes and lightning, and as a remedy for malaria.It is known as the Natal Ginger.Sherungulu.Indungulu.

S.
aethiopicus is a very polymorphic species, size, colour and depth of the lobing of the labellum may vary within a single population and considerable variation occurs in tuber length and in the size of the ligule.
The type plant of Kaempferia natalensis had only female flowers; Wood & Franks (1911a), when estab lishing Siphonochilus, recorded hermaphrodite flowers to be rare.In other respects the Natal plants cannot be separated from their more northerly counterparts.

Hedychium flavescens
Plants up to 120 mm tall, more usually 2~\ m.Inflorescence terminal on a frond-like leaf shoot.Flowers borne singly or in cincinni; bracts and/or bracteoles pre sent or not.Labellum: often showy, lateral staminodes pre sent as small subulate teeth or reduced to small swellings or absent; anther connective crested or not.Fruit usually spherical.
A large genus of at least 200 species widely distributed throughout SE Asia with representatives in Queensland and Japan.
Plants up to 3 m.Leaves sessile or shortly petiolate, up to 600 x 100 mm, lanceolate acuminate, margins pubes cent, undersurface sometimes so; ligule pubescent.Inflorescence pendulous, up to 300 mm long, axis pubes cent.Flowers white red and yellow, borne in 2-flowered cincinni; bracts absent; bracteoles glistening white with pink tips, open to base but encircling flower buds, quickly deciduous.Corolla tube shorter than 20 mm calyx.Petals white, dorsal much broader than laterals.Staminodes: labellum up to 40 mm long, broadly ovate, bifid at apex, yellow, mottled and striped with red; lateral staminodes slender, subulate, up to 10 mm long; anther massive, ecristate.Ovary densely pubescent.Fruit spherical, up to 20 mm diam., orange.
A zeriunbet, the Shell Ginger, is found in tropical gar dens all over the world.It is probably truly native to NE India, Burma and Indo-China.It is reported to have escaped from gardens in the Hluhluwe area of Zululand.
This name was based on an unlocalised collection from Natal (Medley Wood 1942, K!).It is almost certain ly the Asiatic K. rotunda L. widely cultivated in the east for its medicinal properties, and presumably brought to Africa by the Indians.