Strelitzia reginae
FAMILY NAME Strelitziaceae
CHARACTERISTICS Clumps of broadly oblong leaves up to 70cm (28in) long
HABITAT Riverbanks and shrub clearings near coastal areas
DISTRIBUTION Native to South Africa, also introduced to Central and Tropical South America
FLOWERS AND FRUITS The exotic flowers are mostly orange with a touch of blue; fruit is a capsule of small seeds
This striking plant gets its name from the vibrant flowers that resemble the crest of an exotic bird. It’s pollinated by sunbirds who rest on the flower’s beak-like plinth, triggering a gentle opening of the ‘beak’ and releasing the pollen. The bird then deposits this on other flowers. This type of pollination, using birds rather than insects, is key to the growth pattern of this plant; as it ages, its flowers get bigger, rather than simply producing more flowers of the same size. Its Latin name Strelitzia comes from the amateur botanist Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of King George III.