A few other hedychium are late bloomers as well. I find Curcuma roscoeana and Curcuma aurantiaca tend to bloom very late as well. There are of course evergreen gingers that are short day bloomers and would just be getting started, but I assume you mean hardy, winter dormant type stuff. I've got a Zingiber bradleyanum just open up for the first time ever. Some curcuma are still going strong with new inflor.s sprouting. Hedychium are probably the best though since they often do a great late season flush with the cooler weather as long as you can keep them well watered during the dryer late summer/autumn months.

Tim Chapman

I have a Hedychium coronarium compactum I noticed yesterday that has a bloom head forming for the first time. I hope it hurries before the first frost in a few weeks.

Rebecca

Ooops, sorry that is Hedychium gardnerianum compactum.

My Curcuma alismatifolia is just starting to bloom.
Photo taken Wed. 9-29-04
{{gwi:845279}}

hedychium flavescens is one of the latest bloomers for me.

Hedychium flavescens, H. flavum and H. greenei are still blooming here in northern California in mid November. in past years I have also had Alpinia zerumbet continue blooming into mid winter.

H flavescens always for me and also Luna Moth decided to put out a late flush this fall after blooming in June. Everything is all over now though!

I second the hedychium flavescens. Though this year it started blooming earlier for me, usually it doesn't start till about october or later and usually blooms till the frosts hit.

I ... what is it third the H. flavscens. Mine started blooming oh a week back.
Mike

Wow Mike, you have a Hedychium that began blooming in Mid December?! When is your first frost there? It was 16F here this morning, and reached only 37F today. My brain is so cold it cannot process the thought of there being a place where Hedychiums are still in bloom! Thats a pretty neat thing to wake up to on Christmas!

I might need to look into H. flavescens next year!

Many Hedychium spp. are quite use to cool/cold temps and adapt to our hot summers. A freeze will knock them down though. We had a mild winter up to a few days ago (all are down now). H. thyrsiforme, flavescens, coronarium and others will bloom til the first frost. the first two tend to bloom in the fall as well, where H. coronarium starts much sooner in the season. Some of the epiphytic hedychium bloom in the middle of winter (in a greenhouse though), and some like H. gracile go completely deciduous before the freezes ever come.

Tim Chapman