Goeppertia latifolia

Native from Panama to Ecuador and Trinidad, this perennial herb grows in tropical forests and clearings. Broad, pleated leaves may show pale purple bands, and the roots form large, edible storage organs. Dense, upright flower spikes have closely overlapping green and maroon bracts. Flowers develop in pairs beneath the bracts, with purple petals and white to cream-colored flower parts. Cream-colored forms also occur. Rounded capsules usually contain three wrinkled seeds, each with a pale basal appendage. Flowers and developing fruits can share the same spike. Photographed in Colombia.