Costus woodsonii

Native from Nicaragua to Colombia, this plant is a clump-forming perennial herb reaching about six feet tall. Underground rhizomes produce fleshy stems with glossy, broadly elliptical leaves arranged in spirals. At the stem tips, tightly overlapping, waxy red bracts form cylindrical cones. Reddish-orange tubular flowers with yellow-orange lips emerge between the bracts, usually one to three at a time. Nectar glands among the bracts attract ants. The plant occurs in tropical rainforests and is widely cultivated as an ornamental. Small plantlets can develop at the bases of aging flowerheads, providing another means of reproduction alongside rhizome growth. Photographed in Barranquilla, Colombia.