Giant White Bird of Paradise – 5 Seeds

Giant White Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia nicolai) grows mostly in coastal dune vegetation and in evergreen forests near the coast. It is a common feature of the coastal vegetation from East London northwards. It grows in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and up into Mozambique towards Zimbabwe.
Common names: Natal wild banana, (E); Natalse wildepiesang (A); isigude, igceba, inkamanga (Z); ikhamanga, isigude, isigceba (X).

It can grow up to 12m high and 4m wide. It is an evergreen with multi-stems that form dense clumps. The stem is woody and smooth in texture. It is light to dark grey and marked with old leaf scars. Attached to the stem by long, thick leaf stalks are the enormous, opposite leaves that are shiny and grey-green, with blades capable of reaching up to 2m in length. The flowers have white sepals with blue petals and consist of 5 purplish blue, boat-shape sheaths. The whole flower resembles the head of the bird, with a white crest and purple beak. The plant flowers throughout the year with a peak in spring-summer.

Growing Giant White Bird of Paradise

Indoor Sowing: Spring and Summer.

Direct Sowing: Spring and Summer.

• Remove the orange tufts from the seeds.
• Soak in lukewarm water for 24 hours.
• Scarify the seed lightly then sow in potting soil. Keep moist.
• Germination should occur in 2-3 months, but can also take as long as 6 months or more.
• Transplant to individual pots or ground when seedlings have 3-5 leaves.
• It takes 3-5 years for the plants to start producing flowers.