Roscoea forrestii

Roscoea forrestii is a perennial herbaceous plant occurring in the Sichuan and Yunnan provinces of China. Most members of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae), to which it belongs, are tropical, but R. forrestii, like other species of Roscoea, grows in much colder mountainous regions. It is sometimes grown as an ornamental plant in gardens. It was named after George Forrest (1873–1932) who discovered it in Yunnan.

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Roscoea forrestii is a perennial herbaceous plant. Like all members of the genus Roscoea, it dies back each year to a short vertical rhizome, to which are attached the tuberous roots. When growth begins again, "pseudostems" are produced: structures which resemble stems but are actually formed from the tightly wrapped bases (sheaths) of its leaves. Plants of R. forrestii are usually 17–30 cm tall, but may be up to 35 cm, with four to eight leaves. The first three to five leaves consist only of sheaths, which are flushed or dotted with pink. The remainder of the leaves have a blade which is free from the pseudostem and is 6.5–13 cm by 2–5 cm, smooth, or less often with short hairs (pubescent). In its native habitats, R. forrestii flowers between May and July. The stem (peduncle) of the flower spike is hidden by the leaf sheaths. The pale green bracts which subtend the flowers are shorter than the calyx or equal to it in length. Flowers may be purple or yellow. Each flower has the typical structure for Roscoea (see the diagrams in that article). There is a tube-shaped outer calyx, flushed with pink, 5–13 cm long with a two- or three-toothed apex. Next the three petals (the corolla) form a tube which protrudes from the calyx, 5–13 cm long, terminating in three lobes, an upright central lobe, 2.5–4 cm long by 1.5–2.5 cm wide, with dark veins, and two narrower side lobes, 2.6–4 cm long by 5–10 mm wide. Inside the petals are structures formed from four sterile stamens (staminodes): two lateral staminodes form what appear to be small upright petals, 1.1–2.5 cm long; two central staminodes are fused at the base to form a lip or labellum, 3–4.1 cm long by 2.1–3 cm wide. The labellum bends backwards and is split from about halfway into two lobes. The single functional stamen has a cream anther, about 5–8 cm long, with 5–9 mm long spurs formed from the connective tissue between the two capsules of the anther. The ovary is 1–5 cm long.