Featured Plant

The common name, bird of paradise, refers to the flower, which resembles the crested head of a tropical bird. Its orange and blue flowers look like a bird's brilliant plumage. This common name is used here in North America and in England, but in South Africa, where the plant is native, it is commonly known as crane flower. Bird of paradise is probably one of the most recognized cultivated plants in the world. It is abundantly-planted in Southern California and is actually the official floral emblem of the City of Los Angeles. The Strelitzia plant has a bold structure with clumps of stiff, grey-green, banana-like leaves growing up to four feet in height. The flowers reach another couple of feet above the foliage, perched on the tips of long stalks.

The flower structure and pollination biology of the bird of paradise are fascinating. The hard, beak-like sheath from which the flower emerges is called a spathe and is positioned perpendicular to the stem, giving it the appearance of a bird's head and beak atop a long narrow neck, similar to a crane. It conveniently makes a sturdy perch for supporting South African sunbirds, which pollinate the plant. The flowers, which emerge one at a time from the spathe, consist of three brilliant orange sepals and three bright blue petals. Two of the blue petals are joined together to form an arrow-like nectary. When the birds sit to have a drink of nectar, the petals open and cover their feet with pollen. When they visit the next flower the pollen is transferred from the bird's feet to that next flower.