Curcuma Gingerstar Red Torch Thai Tulip

Curcuma Gingerstar Red Torch is a stunning Thai Tulip (Curcuma) hybrid, cultured in Holland (Netherlands) and registered in 2006 with the trademark Gingerstar® Red Torch Curcuma by Moerheim Roses & Trading, a Dutch plant breeder.

During the last years Curcuma plants, commonly called Thai Tulips or Siam tulips, which belong to the ginger family (Zingiberaceae) became very popular and every season there seem to be new colorful hybrids. The showy inflorescences, the real flowers are mostly quite small (see 2.picture below), last for about a month and are well-liked as cut flowers for exotic flower bouquets and floral decorations. The name Thai tulip or Siam tulip is derived from the imagination, that a field of Curcuma plants looks on the first view like a field of tulips. Curcuma plants are dormant most time of the year. They arise with the end of the tropical hot season in May - June and start to flower with the beginning of the rainy season in July - August. Latest in September - October the tropical plant dies back except for the rhizome, to delight us in the next year again with its gorgeous, exotic inflorescences. Blossoms of Curcuma Gingerstar Red Torch get a length of about 25 cm and are the longest Thai tulips we ever came across. Even after a long research we couldn`t figure out the parentage of this beautiful hybrid.

Flower Photography © Orchids Flowers.com
Image: Curcuma Gingerstar Red Torch Thai Tulip