Alpinia is a genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of plant

Plant

Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...

s, with more than 230 species from the Ginger family (Zingiberaceae

Zingiberaceae

Zingiberaceae, or the Ginger family, is a family of flowering plants consisting of aromatic perennial herbs with creeping horizontal or tuberous rhizomes, comprising ca. 52 genera and more than 1300 species, distributed throughout tropical Africa, Asia, and the Americas.Many species are important...

). It is named for Prospero Alpini

Prospero Alpini

Prospero Alpini , was a Venetian physician and botanist....

, a 17th-century Italian botanist who specialized in exotic plants.

Description

These plants grow from large rhizome

Rhizome

In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...

s. The stem consists of closely folded blades, such as in banana

Banana

Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....

 trees. The flowers grow on long raceme

Raceme

A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...

s. They are popularly grown as ornamentals for their flashy flower

Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...

s.

Taxonomy

DNA

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...

 sequence-based methods have shown that this genus is polyphyletic. It is represented by six clade

Clade

A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...

s distributed across the tribe Alpinieae, that do not correspond to Smith's (1990) classification of the genus. Further research is needed to specify the taxa in this genus.

Species

Common species:

• Alpinia abundiflora
• Alpinia acrostachya
• Alpinia caerulea
  Alpinia caerulea
  Alpinia caerulea, native ginger, is an understorey perennial herb to 3 m., growing under rainforest, gallery forest and wet sclerophyll forest canopy in eastern Australia....
  
  - Australian Native Ginger
• Alpinia conchigera
  Alpinia conchigera
  Alpinia conchigera, the Lesser Alpinia, is a plant species in the genus Alpinia.Cardamomin is a chalconoid isolated from A. conchigera.-External links:*...
  
  - Lesser Alpinia
• Alpinia emaculata
• Alpinia galanga
  Alpinia galanga
  Alpinia galanga, a plant in the ginger family, is an herb used in cooking, especially in Indonesian cuisine and Thai cuisine. It is one of four plants known as galangal, and is differentiated from the others with the common name greater galangal...
  
  - Greater Galingal
• Alpinia javanica - Javanese Alpinia
• Alpinia melanocarpa - Black-fruited Alpinia
• Alpinia mutica - Small Shell Ginger, Orchid Ginger, Narrow-leaved Alpinia
• Alpinia nutans
  Alpinia nutans
  Alpinia nutans is a Southeast Asian plant of the ginger family , which is often used as a medicinal plant.-Characteristics:...
  
  - Dwarf Cardamom, Ginger Lily, Shell Ginger
• Alpinia officinarum - Lesser Galangal, Chinese Ginger
• Alpinia petiolata - Stalked-leaved Alpinia
• Alpinia purpurata - Red Ginger, Ostrich Plume, Jungle Queen, Pink Cone Ginger
• Alpinia pyramidata - Java Galangal
• Alpinia rafflesiana - Raffles' Alpinia
• Alpinia speciosa - Shellflower, Shellplant
• Alpinia striata
• Alpinia zerumbet
  Alpinia zerumbet
  Alpinia zerumbet is a Chinese perennial plant of the ginger family ....
  
  - Golden Lotus, Shell Ginger)
• Alpinia zingiberina

Less common species:

• Alpinia acuminata
• Alpinia aenea
• Alpinia affinis
• Alpinia agiokuensis
• Alpinia alata
• Alpinia albertisii
• Alpinia albipurpurea
• Alpinia allugas
• Alpinia amentacea
• Alpinia angustifolia
• Alpinia annabellae
• Alpinia antillarum
• Alpinia apoensis
• Alpinia aquatica
• Alpinia arctiflora
• Alpinia arfakensis
• Alpinia arundelliana
• Alpinia assimilis
• Alpinia athroantha
• Alpinia aurantiaca
• Alpinia auriculata
• Alpinia bambusifolia
• Alpinia beamanii
• Alpinia biakensis
• Alpinia bicalyculata
• Alpinia bifida
• Alpinia bilamellata
• Alpinia bisculata
• Alpinia blepharocalyx
• Alpinia blumei
• Alpinia boia
• Alpinia boninsimensis
• Alpinia borneensis
• Alpinia borraginoides
• Alpinia brachyantha
• Alpinia brachypoda
• Alpinia bracteata
• Alpinia brevilabris
• Alpinia brevis
• Alpinia brevituba
• Alpinia burkillii
• Alpinia calcarata
• Alpinia calcicola
• Alpinia calycodes
• Alpinia campanaria
• Alpinia cannaefolium
• Alpinia capitellata
• Alpinia cardamomum-medium
• Alpinia carinata
• Alpinia carnea
• Alpinia carolinensis
• Alpinia celebica
• Alpinia cernua
• Alpinia chaunocolea
• Alpinia chinensis
• Alpinia chrysorachis
• Alpinia coerulea
• Alpinia coeruleo-viridis
• Alpinia colossea
• Alpinia comosa
• Alpinia condensata
• Alpinia conferta
• Alpinia congesta
• Alpinia conghuaensis
• Alpinia conglomerata
• Alpinia copelandii
• Alpinia corallina
• Alpinia coriacea
• Alpinia coriandriodora
• Alpinia cornu-cervi
• Alpinia cristata
• Alpinia crocodocalyx
• Alpinia cumingii
• Alpinia cylindrocephala
• Alpinia dasystachys
• Alpinia decurva
• Alpinia decurvata
• Alpinia dekockii
• Alpinia densespictata
• Alpinia densibractetata
• Alpinia densiflora
• Alpinia diffissa
• Alpinia divaricata
• Alpinia dolichocephala
• Alpinia domatifera
• Alpinia dyeri
• Alpinia edanoi
• Alpinia elmeri
• Alpinia elwesii
• Alpinia engleriana
• Alpinia eremochlamys
• Alpinia eremochlamys
• Alpinia euastra
• Alpinia eubractea
• Alpinia eustales
• Alpinia exostylis
• Alpinia flabellata
• Alpinia flava
• Alpinia flexistamen
• Alpinia fluvitialis
• Alpinia formosana
• Alpinia foxworthyi
• Alpinia fraseriana
• Alpinia fusiformis
• Alpinia gagnepainii
• Alpinia gigantea
• Alpinia glabra
• Alpinia glabrescens
• Alpinia glacicaerulea
• Alpinia globosa
• Alpinia gracilis
• Alpinia gracillima
• Alpinia graminea
• Alpinia grandiceps
• Alpinia grandis
• Alpinia guinanensis
• Alpinia haenkei
• Alpinia hagena
• Alpinia hainanensis
• Alpinia hamiltoniana
• Alpinia hansenii
• Alpinia havilandii
• Alpinia hemsleyanan
• Alpinia henryi
• Alpinia hibinoi
• Alpinia himantoglossa
• Alpinia hirsuta
• Alpinia hokutensis
• Alpinia homeana
• Alpinia hookeriana
• Alpinia hulstijnii
• Alpinia humilis
• Alpinia hylandii
• Alpinia illustris
• Alpinia intermedia
• Alpinia involucrata
• Alpinia iriomotensis
• Alpinia janowskii
• Alpinia japonica
• Alpinia jianganfeng
• Alpinia jingxiensis
• Alpinia kainantensis
• Alpinia katsumadae
• Alpinia kelungensis
• Alpinia kermesina
• Alpinia kiungensis
• Alpinia kiushiana
• Alpinia koidzumiana
• Alpinia korthalsii
• Alpinia koshunensis
• Alpinia kumatahe
• Alpinia kusshakuensis
• Alpinia kwangsiensis
• Alpinia laosensis
• Alpinia latilabris
• Alpinia lauterbachii
• Alpinia laxiflora
• Alpinia laxisecunda
• Alpinia leptostachya
• Alpinia ligulata
• Alpinia linguiformis
• Alpinia longepetiola
• Alpinia luteo-carpa
• Alpinia maclurei
• Alpinia maclurei
  guangdongensis
• Alpinia macrantha
• Alpinia macrocarpa
• Alpinia macrocephala
• Alpinia macroscaphis
• Alpinia macrostemon
• Alpinia macroura
• Alpinia maculata
• Alpinia malaccensis
• Alpinia malaccensis nobilis
• Alpinia manii
• Alpinia manostachys
• Alpinia martinii
• Alpinia maxii
• Alpinia mediomaculata
• Alpinia menghaiensis
• Alpinia mesanthera
• Alpinia microlophon
• Alpinia missionis
• Alpinia modesta
• Alpinia mollis
• Alpinia mollissima
• Alpinia molucana
• Alpinia monopleura
• Alpinia multispicata
• Alpinia murdochii
• Alpinia musaefedia
• Alpinia myriocratera
• Alpinia nanchuanensis
• Alpinia napoensis
• Alpinia neesana
• Alpinia nidus-vespae
• Alpinia nieuwenhuizii
• Alpinia nigra
• Alpinia novae-hiberniae
• Alpinia novae-pommeraniae
• Alpinia nupiocratera
• Alpinia oblongifolia
• Alpinia oceanica
• Alpinia odontonema
• Alpinia oligantha
• Alpinia orchioides
• Alpinia orthostachys
• Alpinia ovata
• Alpinia ovoidocarpa
• Alpinia oxymitra
• Alpinia oxyphylla
• Alpinia padacanca
• Alpinia pahangensis
• Alpinia papuana
• Alpinia parviflora
• Alpinia pectinata
• Alpinia penduliflora
• Alpinia penicillata
• Alpinia philippinensis
• Alpinia phoenicea
• Alpinia pininga
• Alpinia pinnanensis
• Alpinia platychilus
• Alpinia plectophylla
• Alpinia plumieri
• Alpinia polyantha
• Alpinia porphyrea
• Alpinia porphyrocarpa
• Alpinia porrecta
• Alpinia pricei
• Alpinia psilogyna
• Alpinia pterocalyx
• Alpinia ptychanthera
• Alpinia pulcherrima
• Alpinia pumila
• Alpinia punicea
• Alpinia quadriloba
• Alpinia racimigera
• Alpinia racemosa
• Alpinia rafflesiana
• Alpinia rechingeri
• Alpinia regia
• Alpinia reticosa
• Alpinia rheedii
• Alpinia rigida
• Alpinia rolfei
• Alpinia romblonensis
• Alpinia romburghiana
• Alpinia rosacea
• Alpinia roscoeana
• Alpinia rosea
• Alpinia rosella
• Alpinia roxburghii
• Alpinia rubella
• Alpinia rubra
• Alpinia rubricaulis
• Alpinia rubromaculata
• Alpinia salamonensis
• Alpinia samoensis
• Alpinia sanderae
• Alpinia sandsii
• Alpinia sasakii
• Alpinia satsumensis
• Alpinia schultzei
• Alpinia schumanniana
• Alpinia secunda
• Alpinia secundiflora
• Alpinia seimundii
• Alpinia sericea
• Alpinia sericiflora
• Alpinia serrulata
• Alpinia shimadae
• Alpinia siamensis
• Alpinia sibuyanensis
• Alpinia silvicola
• Alpinia simsii
• Alpinia singuliflora
• Alpinia smithiae
• Alpinia spicata
• Alpinia squarrosa
• Alpinia stachyodes
• Alpinia stapfiana
• Alpinia stenobracteolata
• Alpinia stenostachys
• Alpinia strobilacea
• Alpinia strobiliformis
• Alpinia subfusicarpa
• Alpinia submutica
• Alpinia subspicata
• Alpinia subverticillata
• Alpinia suishaensis
• Alpinia takaminei
• Alpinia tamacuensis
• Alpinia tomentosa
• Alpinia tonkinensis
• Alpinia tonrokuensis
• Alpinia trachyascus
• Alpinia tricolor
• Alpinia tubulata
• Alpinia unilateralis
• Alpinia uraiensis
• Alpinia uviformis
• Alpinia valetoniana
• Alpinia vanoverberghii
• Alpinia velutina
• Alpinia versicolor
• Alpinia viridiflora
• Alpinia vittata
• Alpinia vitiensis
• Alpinia vulcanica
• Alpinia walang
• Alpinia warburgii
• Alpinia wenzelii
• Alpinia werneri
• Alpinia womerslyi
• Alpinia wrayi