White ginger lily
Hedychium coronarium J.Koenig
White ginger lily (Hedychium coronarium) is a rhizomatous ginger-family herb with pure-white flowers that are intensely fragrant and open at night; grown as an ornamental and the national flower of Cuba; its rhizome is used as medicine.
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White ginger lily (Vietnam)White ginger lily — whole plant (pseudostems and leaves)
White ginger lily — leaves (alternate, two-ranked)
White ginger lily — inflorescence (spike)
White ginger lily — fragrant white flowers
White ginger lily — habitat by a pondWhite ginger lily (Vietnam)White ginger lily — whole plant (pseudostems and leaves)Overview
White ginger lily (Hedychium coronarium), also called white garland-lily or butterfly ginger, is a rhizomatous perennial herb of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae), genus Hedychium, growing 1–3 m tall. The aerial pseudostems rise straight from the rhizome and carry overlapping leaf sheaths. The leaves are alternate, lanceolate to oblong, 20–60 cm long and 5–12 cm wide, softly hairy beneath and arranged in two ranks. The inflorescence is a terminal spike 6–15 cm long made of overlapping bracts, each subtending one large, pure-white, intensely fragrant flower with a white, yellow-marked labellum; the flowers open mainly at night and release a heavy scent. The fruit is a capsule splitting into three valves and containing many black seeds with a fleshy orange-red aril. The rhizome is ivory-white, branched, thick and ginger-scented.
Updated by lebachungtdh@gmail.com · 10/12/2026
White ginger lily is native to the Himalayan foothills and South Asia (India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh), Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, southern China and Taiwan; from there it has been introduced and naturalised across tropical America, the Caribbean, Hawaii and many Pacific islands. It favours damp, humus-rich sites such as stream banks, pond edges and the understorey of open forest, from lowland to hill country. Its pure-white, strongly fragrant flowers make it a popular ornamental and cut flower, and it is the national flower of Cuba, where it is called mariposa (butterfly). The rhizome contains essential oil, labdane diterpenes (coronarins) and phenolic compounds; in traditional medicine the rhizome is pungent and warm, used to promote sweating, reduce swelling and relieve pain in colds, headaches and joint swelling. Outside its native range (Hawaii, Brazil and parts of southern Europe) it spreads vigorously and is regarded as an invasive weed requiring control. It has not been assessed by the IUCN and is therefore listed as Not Evaluated (NE).
Updated by lebachungtdh@gmail.com · 10/12/2026
Life cycle
From seed to productRhizome & shoot
The plant perennates by an ivory-white underground rhizome; each year new buds produce pseudostems with overlapping leaf sheaths, 1–3 m tall.
Leaves
Leaves alternate and two-ranked, lanceolate-oblong, 20–60 cm long, softly hairy beneath; the sheaths clasp the pseudostem.
Flowering
The inflorescence is a terminal spike 6–15 cm long; pure-white flowers with a yellow-marked labellum release a heavy scent and usually open at night, attracting moths.
Fruit, seed & habitat
After flowering, the capsule splits into three valves releasing black seeds with an orange-red aril; the moisture-loving plant often forms large clumps along water.
Distribution & origin
Share of recorded occurrences by region- South Asia & Himalayan foothills (native) — India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh30%
- Mainland Southeast Asia (native) — Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam25%
- Southern China & Taiwan (native)15%
- Tropical America & Caribbean (introduced)15%
- Hawaii, Pacific & elsewhere (introduced/invasive)15%
Chemical composition
Relative content in agarwood resin- Essential oil & floral volatilesGive the strong night scent22%
- Coronarins & labdane diterpenesBioactive compounds of the rhizome16%
- Hedychinols & phenolic compoundsAntioxidant14%
- FlavonoidsAntioxidant, mildly anti-inflammatory14%
- Mucilage & polysaccharides (rhizome)Viscosity, soothing to mucosae12%
- Starch, sugars & mineralsEnergy reserve in the rhizome22%
Uses
- Ornamental & cut flower: pure-white, intensely (especially night-) fragrant flowers grown by ponds and gardens and used in arrangements; the national flower of Cuba.
- Traditional medicine: the rhizome (also called tu qiang huo) is pungent and warm — promotes sweating, reduces swelling and relieves pain; used for wind-cold colds, headache and joint swelling; the flower regulates qi.
- Food & spice: in some regions the young rhizome is used as a ginger substitute; the flowers are used to garnish dishes.
- Material: the large, tough leaves are used for wrapping food, thatching, weaving and paper-making in many Asian countries.
- Agriculture & ecology: planted to hold stream banks and reduce erosion; however, outside its native range it must be controlled as it readily becomes an invasive weed.
Properties
- Form
- Rhizomatous perennial herb 1–3 m tall; pseudostems with overlapping leaf sheaths
- Hallmark
- Two-ranked alternate leaves; white, heavily scented night-opening flowers; ginger-scented rhizome
- Pharmacology
- Rhizome pungent and warm: promotes sweating, reduces swelling, relieves pain; contains antioxidant diterpenes and phenolics
- Invasive & caution
- A strong invasive outside its native range (Hawaii, Brazil); do not self-medicate without guidance
Habitat & conservation
White ginger lily likes damp, lightly shaded sites and often grows along streams, pond edges, ditches and the understorey of open forest on humus-rich soils, from lowland to hill country. Native to the Himalayan foothills, South Asia, mainland Southeast Asia, southern China and Taiwan; widely introduced across the tropical and subtropical Americas, the Caribbean and the Pacific.
Conservation
White ginger lily is widespread and widely cultivated; it has not been assessed by the IUCN and is therefore listed as Not Evaluated (NE). Family Zingiberaceae, genus Hedychium. Value: ornamental and cut flower (national flower of Cuba), medicinal rhizome and material leaves; invasive and needing control outside its native range.
References
- 1POWO — Hedychium coronarium J.Koenig — Plants of the World Online (Kew), 2026
- 2GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — Hedychium coronarium J.Koenig — GBIF, 2026
- 3Wikipedia EN — Hedychium coronarium (white ginger lily) — Wikipedia EN, 2026
- 4Wikipedia VI — Ngải tiên — Wikipedia VI, 2026
- 5Wikipedia ZH — 姜花（薑花） — Wikipedia ZH, 2026
- 6Ảnh: Forest and Kim Starr (CC BY 3.0 US); M108t (CC BY 4.0); Bùi Thụy Đào Nguyên (CC BY-SA 3.0) — Wikimedia Commons, 2026
- 7Ảnh: Wikimedia Commons (CC0 1.0; CC BY-SA 3.0) — Wikimedia Commons, 2026