Strelitzia nicolai seed

LATIN NAME: Strelitzia nicolai

COMMON NAME: Giant Bird of Paradise

The giant bird of paradise is a bold, architectural, evergreen plant of the warm gardens, and its huge, banana-like leaves and its striking, dark-blue and white, bird-like flowers have made it one of the most dramatic of the tropical plants. It grows as a large, evergreen, clumping perennial, reaching up to six metres or more, with the thick, palm-like trunk bearing the huge, glossy, banana-like, deeply split leaves and, through the year, the striking, dark-blue and white, bird-like flowers in the large, boat-shaped heads, followed by the woody capsules of the hard, black-and-orange seeds. It is a species of the flowering plant in the bird-of-paradise family, and it is native to the south-eastern Africa, while it is grown in the warm gardens of the world, and it is known as the giant bird of paradise.

The giant bird of paradise belongs to the bird-of-paradise family, Strelitziaceae, and it is a species of the large, evergreen, clumping perennial, native to the south-eastern Africa, while it is grown for its dramatic, bird-like flowers, and it is known as the giant bird of paradise. It is prized for its huge, banana-like leaves and its striking, dark-blue and white flowers.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The giant bird of paradise has a real and growing place in the research. It has been studied in the horticulture, since its huge, banana-like leaves and its striking, dark-blue and white, bird-like flowers have made it a celebrated plant of the tropical garden, and researchers have examined its growth, its flowering and its cultivation, while its dramatic bloom has drawn attention in the international horticultural press as a plant of the tropical garden. The plant has also been studied in the botany and the ecology, since it is a native of the coastal forests of the south-eastern Africa, and its relationships, its distribution and its role in the forest have been examined, while the ecology of the bird-of-paradise family has been of continuing interest, and the study of the wild plants has been of value to the gardeners. The species has also been studied in the seed biology and the propagation, since its hard seeds and its dramatic habit have been of interest to the growers, and researchers have examined the germination and the raising of the young plants, while the propagation of the giant bird of paradise from the seed has been of continuing interest. For a plant of such drama, the giant bird of paradise has a rich and continuing record of study.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

Ecologically, the giant bird of paradise is a generous plant of the garden. Its striking, dark-blue and white, bird-like flowers feed the nectar-seeking birds and the insects, and its huge, banana-like leaves give a bold, tropical cover and a shelter through the year.

Its economic value is real. The giant bird of paradise is prized for its bold, architectural habit and its dramatic flowers, and its beauty has drawn attention in the international horticultural press as a plant of the tropical garden, while its huge, banana-like leaves have made it a striking plant of the resorts and the conservatories. For a grower, the giant bird of paradise is a rewarding and dramatic plant, and for a gardener of the warm regions it brings a bold, bird-like bloom to the garden. The seeds are easy to start — nick the hard coat with a file or soak them in warm water for a day or two, sow them just below the surface of a pot of moist, free-draining compost, keep them gently watered in the warmth, and they’ll be sprouting steadily, growing on into a bold, dramatic, bird-flowered plant.

Strelitzia nicolai, commonly known as the Giant White Bird of Paradise or Wild Banana are 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). The 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) long leaves are grey-green and arranged like a fan at the top of the stems. 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.