Native Ginger.

Plant to 2 m tall. Leaves shortly petiolate or sessile, glabrous; lamina lanceolate, acuminate, to 40 cm long, 3.5–10 cm wide; ligule to 15 mm long, entire or shallowly emarginate. Inflorescence 12–30 cm long, usually shortly pubescent; bracts narrowly lanceolate, 15–20 mm long, each subtending a cincinnus of up to 6 flowers; bracteoles 5–15 mm long; pedicels 1–2 cm long. Calyx c. 10 mm long. Corolla tube c. 12–14 mm long; lobes 5–8 mm long. Labellum orbicular, shortly clawed, shortly bilobed, c. 1 cm diam., purplish. Lateral staminodes 1 mm long. Filament 2–3 mm long; anther 2–3 mm long; crest 1–2 mm long, entire. Ovary to 6 mm long, usually pubescent, trilocular. Capsule indehiscent, c. 1 cm diam.

Native.

Occurs from just N of Newcastle, N.S.W., through eastern Qld to the islands of Torres Strait. Perhaps also in New Guinea.

Common along streamsides in rainforest.

Qld: State Forest Reserve 191, B.P.M. Hyland 8625 (E, QRS); Port Curtis district, Burnett Ra., M. Crisp 2699 (CBG); Mount Glorious, M.E. Phillips 1063 (CBG).

N.S.W.: Toonanbar State Forest, NW of Kyogle, E.F. Constable 4890 (NSW); Moorland, c. 32 km N of Taree, McGrath (NSW).

Often treated as Alpinia coerulea Benth., orth. var.

The distribution of Alpinia caerulea encompasses that of all other Australian Alpinia except the most southerly locations of A. arundelliana. It is easily distinguished from other blue-fruited species by its great stature, more copiously flowered inflorescence, larger ligules, elongated pedicels, narrow calyx and bilobed labellum. The indumentum of leaves and inflorescence is variable, and in the more southerly localities almost glabrous plants may occur. A form with red colouration on the leaf undersurface has been collected from northern Qld (e.g. near Tully, S.T. Blake 19716, BRI).

W.R. Elliot & D.L. Jones, Encycl. Austral. Pl. 179 (1982); J. Beasley, Plants of Cape York 147 (2009).

Beasley, J. (2009). Plants of Cape York: The Compact Guide. (John Beasley).

Data derived from Flora of Australia Volume 45 (1987), a product of ABRS, ©Commonwealth of Australia