Heliconia psittacorum

parrot's beak

 

Heliconia psittacorum

L.f. 1771

pronounced: hell-ih-KOH-nee-uh sit-uh-KOR-um

(Heliconiaceae — the heliconoa  family)

 

common names: parrot's beak, golden torch

See also Heliconia spp.

Psittacus is Latin for a parrot, from the Greek ψιττακος (psittakos). This old style non-hybrid Heliconia from central America has large green leaves with a red edge. It usually remains around 120 cm but can become taller. It flowers all year and sets seed which aids in its distribution and it quickly colonizes areas with adequate moisture.

 

Photographs taken 2010, Picnic Bay

Page last updated 12th January 2019