''Costus'' is a group of herbaceous

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Costaceae Costaceae, known as the ''Costus'' family or spiral gingers, is a family of pantropical monocots. It belongs to the order Zingiberales, which contains horticulturally and economically important plants such as the banana (Musaceae), bird-of-p ...

, described by

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

as a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

in 1753. It was formerly known as ''Hellenia'' after the Finnish botanist Carl Niclas von Hellens. It is widespread through tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, Africa, and the Americas.World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> ''Costus'' is often characterized and distinguished from relatives such as ''

Zingiber The genus ''Zingiber'' is native to Southeast Asia especially in Thailand, China, the Indian Subcontinent, and New Guinea. It contains the true gingers, plants grown the world over for their culinary value. The most well known are '' Z. offici ...

'' (true ginger) by its spiraling stems. The genus as a whole is thus often called spiral gingers, but this can also refer to '' C. barbatus'' specifically. '' Costus spectabilis'' is the

floral emblem In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

; its flowers are represented (erroneously in red instead of yellow color) on its coat of arms. It is important not to confuse ''Costus speciosus'', ''C. spectabilis'' etc. with the herb known by the common name " costus". Some species are of importance to herbivores, such as caterpillars of the restricted demon (''Notocrypta curvifascia'') which feed on '' Costus speciosus'' (crêpe ginger). The crêpe ginger is also a source of diosgenin, a compound used for the commercial production of various steroids, such as progesterone. In

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

, a mix of '' Costus scaber'' juice and crushed '' Renealmia alpinia'' berries is used to treat dogs bitten by snakes.Aweke, G., 2007. ''Costus'' afer Ker Gawl. In: Schmelzer, G.H. & Gurib-Fakim, A. (Editors). Prota 11(1): Medicinal plants/Plantes médicinales 1. D-Rom PROTA, Wageningen, Netherlands

Species

; Formerly placed here Numerous other species have been called ''Costus'' over the years, but are now regarded as members of other genera. Such genera include ''

Alpinia ''Alpinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is named for Prospero Alpini, a 17th-century Italian botanist who specialized in exotic plants. Species are native to Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands, whe ...

'', ''

Amomum ''Amomum'' is a genus of plants native to China, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and Queensland. It includes several species of cardamom, especially black cardamom. Plants of this genus are remarkable for their pungency and a ...

'', '' Caulokaempferia'', '' Cheilocostus'', '' Chamaecostus'', '' Dimerocostus'', '' Hellenia'', '' Paracostus'', ''

Renealmia ''Renealmia'' is a plant genus in the family Zingiberaceae. Its members are native to tropical Africa and tropical America (Latin America and the West Indies). In Peru, fruits and tubers are sources of indigenous dyes. and indigenous medical tre ...

'', '' Tapeinochilos'', etc.

Gallery

File:Costus guanaiensis Rusby - Latin America, West Indies.jpg, ''Costus guanaiensis'' File:Costus malortieanus H.Wendl. - Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras.jpg, ''Costus malortieanus'' File:Costus productus Gleason ex Maas - Peru.jpg, ''Costus productus'' File:Costus spiralis (Jacq.) Roscoe - trop South America.jpg, ''Costus spiralis'' File:Costus stenophyllus Standl. + L.O.Williams - Costa Rica.jpg, ''Costus stenophyllus'' File:Hellenia speciosa - Congo Rep, Cameroon, Gabon.jpg, ''Costus tapenbeckianus''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q133082 Zingiberales genera