Flora and Fauna of Tropical Asia

For any amateur botanist who has travelled around the tropics, it becomes abundantly clear that the vast majority of ornamentals can now be found in virtually any country, territory or island of similar climate. This is, of course, great if their presence is limited to people’s gardens and public parks, but once they spread and become an invasive species, to the detriment of the endemic local flora, that’s a very different story. Here on the Indian Ocean island of Réunion, one of the most widely represented invasive plant is the stunning Kahili ginger (Hedychium gardnerianum). Known locally by… Continue reading →