Heliconia wagneriana

Native from Chiapas in Mexico through Central America to Ecuador, and also to Trinidad, it is a perennial herb that grows from underground rhizomes in wet tropical habitats. It typically reaches about five to fifteen feet tall. Its upright flower clusters bear yellow bracts with red centers and narrow green margins. Small, tubular green flowers are partly concealed within the bracts. It is cultivated as a tropical garden screen. New plants can be raised by dividing the clumps. Photographed in Colombia.