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| Category: Tropical |
| Family: Zingiberaceae (Gingers) |
| Origin: India (Asia) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: Orange Red |
| Bloomtime: Summer/Fall |
| Height: 4-6 feet |
| Width: 3-5 feet |
| Exposure: Light Shade/Part Sun |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): High Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 25-30° F |
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Hedychium gardnerianum 'Tara' (Tara Ginger) - A strong growing ginger to 6-8 feet tall with blue-green stems topped with 18 inch long spikes bearing the inflorescence of 4 to 6 fragrant orange-red flowers that appear in succession, or sometimes two at a time, over an extended period from summer through fall. The fragrance of the flowers is likened to that of a Gardenia. This plant originated from seed collected in Nepal by Tony Schilling of Kew Gardens. The resulting seedlings were uniform and collectively were named 'Tara' in 1972 to honor Schilling's daughter, noting that word 'tara' is Nepalese for "star". It was originally identified as a selection of Hedychium coccineum by Brian Mathew, but more recently as a form or hybrid of Hedychium gardnerianum by Hedychium specialist Tom Wood. It has also been noted in some catalogs as Hedychium densiflorum. Plant in full sun (coastal) to light shade and irrigate regularly. It is a very hardy Hedychium, succeeding in cooler climates than most and is noted as successful to USDA zone 7 (0-10° F). In cooler climates the foliage freezes down but it is evergreen in our nearly frost-free coastal garden. It is considered a superior ginger that blooms earlier and longer than most others. It is held with such regard in England that it was been awarded the Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit in 1993. Coincidentally that same year we named a cultivar of Anisodontea as Anisodontea 'Tara's Pink' in 1993, but was after our Tara, the Rhodesian Ridgeback who roamed our nursery garden back then. We grew this nice looking ginger from 2004 until 2009 and only stopped growing it as we concentrated on growing more drought resistant plants.
The information displayed on this page about Hedychium greenei is based on our research conducted about this plant from books in our nursery library as well as from information that is provided by reliable online resources. We also have included our own observations made about it as it grew in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers when we had them in our nursery field. We also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.
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