Bird of Paradise

Description

Strelitzia is a genus of five species of perennial plants, native to South Africa. It belongs to the plant family Strelitziaceae. The genus is named after Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom, who was born a princess of the house of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. A common name of the genus is bird of paradise flower/plant, because of a resemblance of its flowers to birds-of-paradise. In South Africa, it is commonly known as a crane flower and is featured on the reverse of the 50-cent coin. It is the floral emblem of the City of Los Angeles; two of the species, S. nicolai and S. reginae, are frequently grown as houseplants.