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Hedychium flavescens W. Carey ex W. Roscoe, Monandrian Plants of the Order Scitamineae: t. 50 (1824).
Accepted name Hedychium flavescens W. Carey ex W. Roscoe, Monandrian Plants of the Order Scitamineae: t. 50 (1824).
Synonyms Distribution Description References Comments Hedychium flavescens Carey ex Roscoe is a plant native to the east Himalaya that was once thought to be a form of Hedychium coronarium but is now considered to be a species in its own right. It is a tall plant growing to about 2 m with slightly grey-green leaves covered beneath with long silky hairs. Rather late in the year it produces a cone-like spike of large, creamy yellow flowers that many think have the best fragrance of all the Hedychium, a powerful spicy, citrus-flower scent. The fragrance of many Hedychium more or less disappears during the day but it remains albeit attenuated with this species.
Hedychium flavescens grows at 1,200 to 2,000 m in India and is quite cold tolerant, down to –4 ºC in a pot. However, it flowers so late in the year that it should be treated only as a greenhouse or conservatory plant where it will flower reliably from September onwards. If the wonderful fragrance is too strong in a confined space remove all but one inflorescence.
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