Alpinia pleuranthodium (pink pearls)

This is one of the lesser known or seen alpinias. I chanced upon this growing at the botanic gardens several months ago. It's not a frequent bloomer, but like many alpinias, it has a gingery fragrance. Unfortunately, not a lot is known about this plant.

alpinia formosana (pinstripe ginger)

Whilst potting around the garden, I noticed that my Alpinia fomorsana was blooming for the very first time. I've grown mine from a rhizome (which I imported from Aloha) in a pot for the last two years. The plant is about 1.2 to 1.5 metres tall and appears to do very well in our climate. The flowers are porcelain white with pink tips and have a strong gingery fragrance. However, unlike it's showy cousins the alpinia zerumbet, this species is grown more for its outstanding foliage consisting of glossy green leaves with fine white pinstriping. It grows well in pots, but probably produces larger inflorescences if grown in the ground. This species is often mistaken for the Alpinia vittata which is quite common in our nursery trade.

jungle king

The Jungle King aka red ginger or Alpinia purpurata remains one of the most popular and beautiful gingers of all time, given the striking colour and showy size of its blooms. Although immensely popular with gardeners and seen in many tropical gardens the world over, I find this ginger difficult to grow. For some reason, they "downsize" under my care, to the point where it shrinks into oblivion. According to various literature, this ginger, like most other gingers, prefer fertile, organically rich, well-drained soil. It can thrive in full sun to bright broken light. I grew mine in a mixture of compost and mixed soil, so surely that does constitute "fertile, organically rich" soil. Then again, I noticed that nurseries usually grow them and other zingiberacae in very "clayey" soil. I guess i'll have to continue experimenting until I get the right mix.