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Plant Datasheet for Costus 'Green Mountain'

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Photo# 11488 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11489 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11490 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11491 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11492 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11493 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11494 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11495 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11496 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11497 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11498 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11499 Specimen# R1630
Costus 'Green Mountain'
From cultivated,

Photo# 11500 Specimen# R0
Costus hybrid 'Green Mountain' at Fairchild Tropical Gardens, Miami, Florida mature inflo.

PLANT FAMILY: Costaceae
BOTANICAL NAME: Costus 'Green Mountain'
FORMAL SCIENTIFIC NAME:
STATUS :
CONTINENT: Neotropical
SYNONYMS:

BOTANICAL NOTES:

Description of specimen at Le Jardin Ombragé
Height = 3 ft
Sheath = 15 mm, purple at base turning green toward top, glabrous
Ligule = 20-25 mm, single lobe, glabrous
Petiole = 8 mm, glabrous
Leaf = up to 30 cm long by 14 cm wide, medium green upper side, pale purple underside, apex shortly acuminate with acumen only 1-2 mm.
Inflorescense = (from pictures) bracts are reddish colored with green appendages, flowers tubular like C. varzearum but reddish orange in color.

From: "Tim Chapman" - Green Mountain is not a form of C. curvibracteatus, but a hybrid I made between C. curvibracteatus and C. varzearum. I've seen it listed as native to Costa Rica or something stupid like that, but St. Gabriel, LA is its origin. C. curvibract.. has no red in its foliage, that comes from the C. varzearum side. The bract appendages also come from the C. varzearum side. I have a as yet unbloomed cross between C. curvi. and C. erythophyllus that has even better foliage, but no hybrid vigor!!! Tim C. (NOTE: the parent plant C. curvibracteatus is actually C. productus. These were mixed up in horticulture.)

ACCESSION NOTES:

Le Jardin Ombragé - NOTE: One of the parents of this hybrid has been incorrectly identified as C. curvibracteatus in the horticultural trade. This hybrid is actually a cross of Costus productus with Costus varzearum. Costus 'Green Mountain' - the only man-made hybrid Costus that is widely found in the horticultural trade. Foliage is similar to C. varzearum and flowers similar to C. curvibracteatus, except for green tips to the bracts. Tim Chapman bred this plant over 12 years ago. It is a very vigorous and easy plant to grow and propagate. The infl. lasts a very long time and blooms throughout the year much the same as the parent plant, C. productus. Tim Chapman told me he did NOT name this plant 'Green Mountain' and does not really like that name.

GardenWeb - posting by Tim Chapman (lists@gingerwoodnursery.com) - Costus "Green Mountain" should have never been listed as C. curvibracteatus (in the catalogs, etc that have it). This is a hybrid I did a few years ago and I'm annoyed on how it has been listed. It is not from Costa Rica as some have listed!! Native to St. Gabriel, LA.. but anyway. It should either be listed as C. hybrid "Green Mountain" or C. curvibracteatus X C. varzearum "Green Mountain" Unfortunately it was put into tissue culture with the name C. curvibracteatus as well, so it will be a long time to fix this mistake. Theres more to the story of course, but I'll stick to the naming issue.

GINGERSRUS CATALOG LISTING:
Costus 'Green Mountain' - inflorescense Costus 'Green Mountain' is one of the few true hybrids of the spiral gingers that is widely cultivated. It was bred by Tim Chapman from Costus productus and Costus varzearum, and shares characteristics from both. The foliage is dark green and quite tropical looking. It grows to about 4 ft. tall in filtered shade to part sun. (BTW, Tim told me he does not really like that name "Green Mountain", but had not named it when he gave the hybrid to Stokes Tropicals.)

The bracts are pink to red on the insides and green tipped. Brightly colored tubular flowers peek out from under the bracts, orange with red labellums. I have read in another catalog that this plant will flower from spring to winter, but I have not found that to be true. Mine flowers in late summer.

I am not certain how hardy this ginger it, the only rating I have seen indicates zone 10. I have not left it outdoors through the winter here in my zone 8B garden, but it has survived an early season freeze here down to the mid twenties and I suspect it would be safe throughout zone 9.

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