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Kaempferia spp.
peacock ginger
Overview
Kaempferia is a genus of about 50 low, rhizomatous perennials in the ginger family (Zingiberaceae), native to tropical Asia and Africa. Most are stemless plants that hold their leaves close to the ground, forming spreading clumps 4-12 inches (10-30 cm) tall from aromatic underground rhizomes. The rounded to oval leaves often lie almost flat in a rosette and may be plain green or patterned with silver, bronze, or dark zoning, as in the peacock gingers grown for foliage. Short-lived flowers in white, lilac, pink, or purple open a few at a time, sometimes nestled among the leaves and sometimes, as in K. rotunda, before the leaves emerge. The plants grow in seasonally wet tropical forest and woodland, going dormant through the dry or cool season and resprouting with warmth and rain. Several species, including K. galanga and K. parviflora, have aromatic rhizomes used in cooking and traditional medicine. The genus needs warmth, shade, and moist, humus-rich soil in the growing season; it is frost-tender and rots if kept wet while dormant.
Native Range
Kaempferia spp. is native to tropical and subtropical Asia and parts of Africa, ranging from India and southern China through Southeast Asia. Plants grow on the floor of seasonally wet forest and woodland, in shade and moist, humus-rich soil.Suggested Uses
Kaempferia spp. is grown as a shade groundcover and foliage plant in tropical and woodland gardens, and as a container or houseplant in cooler regions. The patterned peacock gingers are used for low, spreading foliage in warm, shaded beds.How to Identify
Appearance
Size & Dimensions
Height4" - 1'
Width/Spread8" - 1'6"
Bloom Information
Kaempferia spp. flowers through the warm growing season, mainly summer, with each flower lasting only a day or two but opening in succession over weeks. Colors range from white and pale lilac to deep purple. In K. rotunda the flowers appear in spring before the foliage, while peacock gingers flower amid their patterned leaves.
Detailed Descriptions
Flower Description
white, pink, lilac, or purpleFoliage Description
green, often patterned with silver or bronzeGrowing Conditions
Sun Requirements
Tolerates up to 4 hours of direct sunlight daily
• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight
• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight
• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight
Care & Maintenance
Care Guide
Grow Kaempferia spp. in partial to full shade on moist, fertile, humus-rich soil that drains freely, planting the rhizomes shallowly after the soil warms in spring. Water and feed generously through the warm growing season to support continuous leaf and flower production. As temperatures drop in autumn the foliage yellows and dies back, after which the soil is kept barely moist to prevent the dormant rhizomes from rotting. In climates colder than about USDA zone 8 the rhizomes are lifted and stored frost-free, or grown in containers moved indoors. Warmth above 60°F (16°C) is needed for active growth.Pruning
Kaempferia spp. needs no pruning. Remove flowers and leaves as they fade, and clear away the foliage once it has yellowed and collapsed in autumn. Divide the dormant rhizomes in late winter or early spring before growth resumes.Container Growing
✓ Suitable for container growing
Minimum container size: 2 gallons