Clerodendrum paniculatum (Pagoda Flower)

This plant is a tropical shrub native from India and southern China through Southeast Asia to New Guinea and the Bismarck Archipelago. Its four-sided stems bear opposite, broad leaves with heart-shaped bases, prominent veins, and often three to seven lobes. Large, upright flower clusters branch in tiers and taper toward the top. The tubular flowers have spreading corolla lobes, with stamens and a slender style extending well beyond the tube. Orange-red flowers occur on reddish inflorescence branches; a cream to pale yellow form has green branches. Small fleshy fruits darken as they ripen. New shoots develop from suckers near the parent plant, and it is propagated from stem or root cuttings. Photographed in Guaduas, Colombia, and Florida, USA.