Costus igneus
Encyclopedia
Costus igneus, common name Fiery Costus or Spiral Flag, is a species of herbaceous plant
in the Costaceae
family.
It is claimed to help build up insulin
in the human body and is sometimes referred to as the Insulin Plant. This plant was grown in Americas and is becoming popular in India because of its medicinal chemicals.
It is now accepted and used widely as an Ayurvedic
medicinal herb.
The plant grows very quickly. And the propagation is by stem cutting. It needs sunshine but it also grows in slightly shady areas.
This plant has large fleshy looking leaves.
The undersides of these large, smooth, dark green leaves have light purple shade. The leaves are spirally arranged around the stem, forming attractive, arching clumps arising from underground rootstocks.
The maximum height of these plants is about two feet.
The flowers are orange in color and are beautiful, 1.5-inch diameter. Flowering occurs during the warm months. And they appear to be cone-like heads at the tips of branches.
It is also possible to consume the leaves by drying and grinding powder of the leaves.
References ZipcodeZoo
Herbaceous plant
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
in the Costaceae
Costaceae
Costaceae or the Costus Family is a family of pantropical monocots. They belong to the order Zingiberales, which contains other horticulturally and economically important plants such as the banana , bird-of-paradise , and edible ginger...
family.
It is claimed to help build up insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
in the human body and is sometimes referred to as the Insulin Plant. This plant was grown in Americas and is becoming popular in India because of its medicinal chemicals.
It is now accepted and used widely as an Ayurvedic
Ayurveda
Ayurveda or ayurvedic medicine is a system of traditional medicine native to India and a form of alternative medicine. In Sanskrit, words , meaning "longevity", and , meaning "knowledge" or "science". The earliest literature on Indian medical practice appeared during the Vedic period in India,...
medicinal herb.
The plant grows very quickly. And the propagation is by stem cutting. It needs sunshine but it also grows in slightly shady areas.
This plant has large fleshy looking leaves.
The undersides of these large, smooth, dark green leaves have light purple shade. The leaves are spirally arranged around the stem, forming attractive, arching clumps arising from underground rootstocks.
The maximum height of these plants is about two feet.
The flowers are orange in color and are beautiful, 1.5-inch diameter. Flowering occurs during the warm months. And they appear to be cone-like heads at the tips of branches.
It is also possible to consume the leaves by drying and grinding powder of the leaves.
Taxonomy
- Domain: Eukaryota - Whittaker & Margulis,1978 - eukaryotes
- Kingdom: Plantae - Haeckel, 1866 - Plants
- Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae - Cavalier-Smith, 1981
- Phylum: Tracheophyta - Sinnott, 1935 Ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998 - Vascular Plants
- Subphylum: Euphyllophytina
- Infraphylum: Radiatopses - Kenrick & Crane, 1997
- Class: Liliopsida - Scopoli, 1760
- Subclass: Commelinidae - Takhtajan, 1967
- Superorder: Zingiberanae - Takhtajan Ex Reveal, 1992
- Order: Zingiberales - Grisebach, 1854
- Family: Costaceae - Nakai, 1941 - Spiralflag Family
- Subfamily: Asteroideae
- Tribe: Coreopsideae
- Genus: Costus - Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 2. 1753. - Costus
- Specific epithet: igneus - N.E.Br.
- Botanical name: - Costus igneus N.E.Br.
References ZipcodeZoo