Heliconia caribaea
Lam.
Heliconiaceae
Bihai borinquena (Griggs) Griggs
Bihai conferta (Petersen) Kuntze
Bihai luteofusca (Jacq.) Kuntze
Heliconia borinquena Griggs
Heliconia conferta Petersen
Heliconia luteofusca Jacq.
Common Name:
Close-up of the flowers
Photograph by: ImageMD
General Information
Heliconia caribaea is a large, evergreen perennial plant that looks rather like a banana plant. It produces a pseudostem 3 - 6 metres tall from a rhizomatous rootstock. The leaf stems are up to 2 metres long, the leaf blades oblong or elliptic-oblong, up to 1 metre long or more, 20 - 35cm wide[
656- Title
- Monocotyledons and Gymnosperms of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
- Publication
- Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. Vol. 52
- Author
- Acevedo-Rodríguez P. & Strong M.T. (Editors)
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Smithsonian Institution; Washington.
- Year
- 2005
- ISBN
- 0097-1618
- Description
- A treatment of the monocots and gymnosperms growing in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
]. The inflorescence are erect with short peduncle, 30 - 50cm long[
656- Title
- Monocotyledons and Gymnosperms of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
- Publication
- Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. Vol. 52
- Author
- Acevedo-Rodríguez P. & Strong M.T. (Editors)
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Smithsonian Institution; Washington.
- Year
- 2005
- ISBN
- 0097-1618
- Description
- A treatment of the monocots and gymnosperms growing in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
The plant is harvested from the wild as a local source of food. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant in gardens.
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
656- Title
- Monocotyledons and Gymnosperms of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
- Publication
- Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. Vol. 52
- Author
- Acevedo-Rodríguez P. & Strong M.T. (Editors)
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Smithsonian Institution; Washington.
- Year
- 2005
- ISBN
- 0097-1618
- Description
- A treatment of the monocots and gymnosperms growing in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
Range
Caribbean - Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Leeward Isles, Windward Isles.
Habitat
Frequent in humid ravines and on moist or wet hillsides at low to middle elevations from 50 - 700 metres[
656- Title
- Monocotyledons and Gymnosperms of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
- Publication
- Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. Vol. 52
- Author
- Acevedo-Rodríguez P. & Strong M.T. (Editors)
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Smithsonian Institution; Washington.
- Year
- 2005
- ISBN
- 0097-1618
- Description
- A treatment of the monocots and gymnosperms growing in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
Properties
| Edibility Rating |  |
| Habit | Evergreen Perennial |
| Height | 5.00 m |
| Pollinators | Hummingbirds |
| Cultivation Status | Ornamental, Wild |
Cultivation Details
A plant of the humid tropics, it can also be grown in humid subtropical areas[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Requires a moist, fertile, humus-rich soil and a semi-shady position[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Edible Uses
Young shoots - cooked and eaten as a vegetable[
301- Title
- Cornucopia II
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications, California.
- Year
- 1998
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-2-5
- Description
- The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
].
The rhizomes are a source of starch[
301- Title
- Cornucopia II
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications, California.
- Year
- 1998
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-2-5
- Description
- The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
].
Seeds[
301- Title
- Cornucopia II
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications, California.
- Year
- 1998
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-2-5
- Description
- The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
].
Medicinal
None known
Other Uses
None known
Propagation
Seed -
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Useful Tropical Plants Database 2014 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
