Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

Strelitzia nicolai

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Kingdom
  
Family
  
Scientific name
  
Strelitzia nicolai

Rank
  
Species

Order
  
Genus
  
Strelitzia

Higher classification
  
Bird of paradise flower

Strelitzia nicolai Strelitzia nicolai

Similar
  
Bird of paradise flower, Strelitzia reginae, Strelitziaceae, Strelitzia alba, Ravenala

Strelitzia nicolai giant white bird of paradise


Strelitzia nicolai, commonly known as the giant white bird of paradise or wild banana, is a species of banana-like plants with erect woody stems reaching a height of 6 m (20 ft) and the clumps formed can spread as far as 3.5 m (11 ft).

Contents

Strelitzia nicolai PlantFiles Pictures Giant Bird of Paradise Natal Strelitzia Wild

The 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) long leaves are grey-green and arranged like a fan at the top of the stems, similar to Ravenala madagascariensis. The inflorescence is composed of a dark blue bract, white sepals and a bluish-purple "tongue". The entire flower can be as much as 18 cm (7.1 in) high by 45 cm (18 in) long and is typically held just above the point where the leaf fan emerges from the stem. Flowers are followed by triangular seed capsules.

Strelitzia nicolai Strelitzia Nicolai Regel

S. nicolai is among the few plants which have been verified to contain the pigment bilirubin, which is usually found in animals.

Strelitzia nicolai Strelitzia nicolai Giant bird of paradise white bird of paradise

Plant id giant bird of paradise strelitzia nicolai


Distribution

Strelitzia nicolai httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

S. nicolai is one of three larger Strelitzia species, the other two being tree-like S. caudata and S. alba. S. nicolai is restricted to evergreen coastal forest and thicket of eastern South Africa from the Great Fish River northwards to Richards Bay. It is also considered native to Mozambique, Botswana and Zimbabwe, and is reportedly naturalized in eastern Mexico (State of Veracruz).

Cultivation

Strelitzia nicolai STRELITZIA nicolai Evergreen Nursery

S. nicolai prefers rich, moist soils with good drainage in full sun to part shade. The plant tolerates light frost. Propagation is via division of clumps, offsets and from seed but note that plants require many years of growth before they begin blooming. In favourable conditions they self-seed freely, and their invasive root systems are best kept away from buildings.

Strelitzia nicolai Strelitzia Semimature and mature Strelitzia nicolai

References

Strelitzia nicolai Wikipedia