Heliconia latispatha
Native from eastern and southern Mexico through Central America to northeastern Peru and Venezuela, this perennial herb grows from underground rhizomes in wet tropical habitats. It typically reaches about seven to ten feet tall. Its upright flower clusters bear eight to seventeen smooth, pointed bracts arranged in a spiral. The bracts range from yellowish orange to red, while the smaller flowers are green to yellow-green with dark green margins. Hummingbirds pollinate the nectar-bearing flowers. Its dense clumps can provide concentrated feeding areas that hummingbirds defend from competitors. The fruits are smooth blue drupes. Cultivated as an ornamental, it has become naturalized on several Hawaiian islands. Photographed in the department of QuindĂo, Colombia.
