Ginger, White Butterfly

Winter hardy to USDA Zones 8-10. Best grown in organically rich, medium to wet, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Likes hot and humid summers and consistently moist soils. Hedychium coronarium, commonly called white ginger lily or garland flower, is perhaps native to the Himalayas but it has been widely cultivated in tropical Asia. It is a rhizomatous tender perennial that may grow to 10’ tall in its native habitat, but more typically grows 3-6’ tall. Features large, lance-shaped, medium green leaves (to 24” long x 5” wide). Fragrant white flowers in dense elliptical racemes (4-8” long) in late summer to early fall. Individual flowers purportedly resemble butterflies, hence the sometimes used common name of butterfly ginger for this species.