Spectacular Horns

• actually this plant’s scientific name is Zingiber spectabile
• but the species is derived from the Latin word spectabilis
• meaning “spectacular”
• and the genus name is actually a Sanskrit word
• that means “horn shaped”
• which references the horn shaped leaves of this plant
• it’s a member of the true ginger family
• a family of plants that you have likely used at least one of while cooking
• the gingers are grown all over the world for their culinary zing and medicinal utility
• this species in specific is grown more for ornamental use
• though it is occasionally planted in Southeast Asia as a medicinal herb
• in ideal conditions, these plants can grow to be up to 15 meters tall
• how fantastic would it be to walk through a forest of Spectacular Horns?
• I would likely get lost
• but be completely content among the plants

• though
• you wouldn’t be able to see the beautiful, pinecone like, inflorescences atop the long green stems
• the term inflorescence refers to the complete flower head of a plant
• these structures are composed of
• bracts, the colorful scale-like parts
• and flowers
• flowers that pop right out of the inside of the bracts
• they’re usually small
• with their papery petals
• and little yellow spots

Really, I just find the diversity of form and color in plants fascinating and these strange orange and red scaly thing perfectly encapsulate my fascination. I came across them in a misguided google search and could not stop looking through pictures. What more do we need to prompt inquiry than some mislead curiousness? In this capacity, I am ever content with meandering, with strolling my way through ideas, information, and images, latching onto whatever captures my attention. We are all explorers just waiting for the next wrong turn.

Here’s to hoping to get lost.