I have been eyeing the Shell Ginger (Alpinia zerumbet) for at least a week, watching the buds get bigger and bigger and stubbornly not flowering. Finally, the temperature soared to 90F/32C on Saturday and evidently inspired the Shell Ginger to open up. The miniature heat wave also caused the gigantic Strangler Fig to drop its leaves, so I walked gingerly through the leaves (fall is really not a thing here and I have yet to figure out the circle of life on the leaf drop on this tree) and started to cut flowers. Then, the bottom dropped out and I was in a torrential rainfall. Likely a result of the cold front behind the heat wave. Gingers in hand, I proceeded gingerly back into the house, drenched and enjoying the fragrant bouquet.
These are such dramatic flowers, I think they are at their best simply arranged. These are in one of my old florist vases and as is with their own foliage. I trimmed a good deal of the foliage off to allow the flowers to shine. The flowers are lightly fragrant adding a subtle ginger scent to the foyer.
A close up-
The flowers always remind me of porcelain and they are quite thick. I think the trip into the garden was worthwhile. The rain cleared, the temperature dropped and it is a beautiful, blue sky day.
To see more vases, visit our hostess, Cathy at ramblinginthegarden and follow the links in the comments.
The Shrub Queen 
Beautiful flowers !
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Thanks, Fred. Happy Monday.
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When they are in the pink bud they remind me of wisteria. But what a fantastic flower. Really stunning. And I agree they deserve their own vase to show off.
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Oh, they do look similar to wisteria. Good call. Thank you.
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The ginger is over the top gorgeous! Wow, the weather turned on a dime. tzgarden.blogspot.com
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Thank you. It is a perfect 74 here today. Go figure
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I am so jealous. My variegated ginger is 3 inches tall, so I will enjoy yours.
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I was surprised these are hardy to Zone 8. Did you know the variegated ones only flower every ten years?
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Worth getting wet for, I would say! I have always enjoyed seeing this shell ginger in a vase but I am not sure if I seen them opening before, or evening realised that they did open… They must look so different when the whole truss is open – and the fragrance sounds lovely. Will they last long in the vase?
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I agree and am enjoying the flowers. They last up to a week, it depends on how far along they are when you cut them. There is only one yellow flower at the top, the rest stay pink and white.
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That’s intriguing – so do they all open if they are on the plant? If they don’t open once cut then perhaps that is why I don’t recall seeing an open bloom
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No, the yellow flowers are only at the top. They do the same thing if left on the plant. It may be that it is a female flower for pollinators?! I don’t know.
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How curious! As you say, it sounds as if it could be something to do with pollination
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90F in March followed by torrential rainfall! Another sign of how different Florida and SoCal are. I adore the shell ginger flowers and envy them every time you use them in a vase.
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That was strange for Florida. Tony says these will grow in LA?
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I fear it would require too much water and that our significantly lower level of humidity in the summer months would be a serious issue. Although it’s rated for USDA hardiness zones 10-11, the genus isn’t even shown in my Sunset Western Garden Book, which generally means a no-go from my perspective as sunset assesses for conditions in addition to winter cold tolerance. If I had a greenhouse maybe…
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When we have a dry summer, I only get foliage…
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I love this flower, thank you for posting this today.
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Thanks, Rosie. That would have to be a rare sight where you are.
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I shall just have to admire it in your garden.
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Singularly beautiful! 🤩
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Thanks, Eliza
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DId I mention that I am trying to find shell ginger in the Los Angeles region? I hope to get there prior to June. Variegated shell ginger already grows here as a foliar plant, without bloom. I doubt that shell ginger would be happy here, but I want to try it because the variegated cultivar performs reasonably well. It does not defoliate as neatly as the other gingers do, so I need to cut it back, but that is no problem when it gets established. It might actually require less work here than in the Los Angeles region, because I can just cut it all back. Where there is no frost, it is more evergreen, so needs meticulous grooming as new foliage develops. That is too much work.
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The flowers are beautiful–both as buds and in full bloom. They’re so graceful in the arrangement, too. I’m glad you’re cooling down to a more comfortable temperature. We are much, much warmer than normal here in the central U.S. this winter. I wonder how hot the summer will be…
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Thank you. I am becoming fearful of what summer might bring.
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I have seen gingers in flower in our area and always admire them. The plants seem to spread and multiply – does yours do this? These flowers makes an individual statement in the vase and need no competition. So beautiful.
The weather you described, of the hot day and sudden heavy downpour sounds exactly like our summer weather here!
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These make a big clump, it is probably six feet wide and tall. They can bloom three times a year if they are happy. It seems there are a lot of similarities between here and parts of Australia
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It does!
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What an interesting flower Amelia especially close up and the fact that it’s scented is always a bonus. The gigantic Strangler Fig sounds most intriguing and scary. Perhaps you can tell us more about it some time. Is it warmer than usual for the time of year?
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Thanks, Anna. The Strangler Figs are quite interesting and a bit Harry Potter. It seems a bit warmer than usual to me.
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Wow, how lovely. The first view makes the ginger look shy/demure, but that second shot is full on!! 😉
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The floozy shot!
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Oh yes, definitely dramatic and definitely worth a trip through fallen fig leaves – not only for the flowers but for the rain shower you triggered! 😉
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