Tropical plants

TianZi Asia

TianZi Biodiversity Research & Development Centre

individual sales

LIST of rare and precious tropical rain forest
and sub-tropical mountain forest plants
of Yunnan, South-West China

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Biodiversity protection, sustainable crop production, and fair trade in China and Asia's Mekong Region
tropical rain forest flowers, exotic rare plants and herbs, products for gardening, horticulture, landscaping, health, hobby, and on wholesale

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We are glad to announce that most of our products will soon be available in our first TianZi Tea House in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Kindly contact us if you intend to pick up larger quantities of any product there, so we can arrange transport from China on time. Thank you.

All our plants are raised from root stocks and seeds to ensure the genetic viability of the species.

FAMILY	PICTURE	SPECIES NAME	Notes on planting
		click into the scientific name to learn more about the species	please note that international shipping period for these plants is our dry and cold season from October to April (during rainy season the plants are too active for export) All our plants ship bare roots during their resting phase in winter. Upon arrival you just need to pot them, add water and enjoy their growth. We wish you success and fun.
Amaryllidaceae		Crinum amabile (cf. chinensis) giant spider lily The largest perennial lily type of plant!	easy to cultivate; needs about 6 sq. meter space per plant when mature; makes several flowers during summer; full sunshine and half shade are possible. Tolerates mild and short frost. A plant that attracts people by its magnificent appearance and scented, tall flowers.
Araceae		Amorphophallus konjac	easy to cultivate; needs about 1 sq. meter space per plant when mature; makes a beautiful flower in spring and an unusually shaped leaf; requires half shade. Tolerates mild and short frost. Can not tolerate strong wind.
		Amorphophallus paeoniifolius by far the most spectacular flower in Asia!	easy to cultivate; needs about 3 sq. meter space per plant when mature; makes an unusual and large flower in spring and an umbrella shaped leaf; requires half shade. Tolerates mild and short frost. Leaves can not tolerate strong wind. Make sure you are out for dinner when the flower opens....
		Alocasia odora (green) or "Elephant Ear"	easy to cultivate; needs about 2 sq. meter space per plant when mature; Can not tolerate strong wind and frost. Requires half shade for optimal growth.
		Alocasia odora (blue) with blue stems, the most elegant of the giant aroids, flowers with lovely fragrance. Very suitable also as an indoor plant.	easy to cultivate; needs about 2 sq. meter space per plant when mature; Can not tolerate strong wind. Takes mild and short frost. Preferes half shade for optimal growth. Flowers have a wonderful scent.
		Colocasia gigantea leaves can't get larger than these...	easy to cultivate; needs about 4 sq. meter space per plant when mature; Can not tolerate strong wind and frost. Requires fertilizer for optimal growth. This plant can easy get a bit too large for a living room.
		Colocasia lihengiae A newly described species; rare	easy to cultivate; needs about 2 sq. meter space per plant when mature; takes mild and short frost; preferes half shade for optimal growth; flowers profusely during summer.
Araliaceae		Trevesia palmata Snow flake tree a beautiful indoor and garden design plant	easy to cultivate;a perfect alternative to the "Christmas Star"; prefers light shade when young; grows to about 5 meter when many years old; can be grown indoors and in the garden. A very excellent plant if you are tired of Christmas trees....
Cucurbitaceae		Thladiantha spec. from Yunnan Mountain Buffalo a living rock! the largest tuber plant of the world! very rare	needs about 1 sq. meter space per plant when mature; can not tolerate strong wind and frost; needs a tree or support fence for vine to grow on.
Dioscoreaceae		Dioscorea bulbifera Air potato	needs no attention at all; this "potato" can be placed anywhere, best together with other larger plants (e.g. Ficus) in the same pot; just put above ground and wait until spring when you can watch the daily growth of the vine. The tubers are used as local medicine and should not be eaten. This is also the case for the mother tuber, which will form in the roots and which will shoot a vine every year.
Hypoxidaceae		Curculigo capitulata Palm grass a flowering plant that looks like a small palm but grows like grass	easy to cultivate; needs about 0.5 sq. meter space per plant when mature; can not tolerate strong wind and frost; prefers light shade.
		Curculigo orchioides Orchid palm grass ideal for miniature plant pot arrangements	easy to cultivate; this is a perfect plant for miniature flower arrangements e.g. in restaurants, or in case your window space is already overcrowded with tropicals....
Iridaceae		Eleutherine plicata red garlic iris an important herbal medicine	easy to cultivate; this is a perfect plant for people interested in herbal medicine as its heart supporting functions are confirmed by scientific studies.
Menispermaceae		Stephania spec. Mountain Turtle a living stone has become rare	needs about 1 sq. meter space per plant when mature; can not tolerate strong wind and frost; needs a tree or support fence for its attractive vine to grow on.
Musaceae, Bananas		Ensete glaucum "Elephant Banana"	easy to cultivate; grows 3 to 5 meter tall and has very attractive shape; requiers full sunshine. The plant is attractively fat at the bottom, therefore the lopcal people call it elephant hip banana!
		Musa ornata ornate banana	easy to cultivate; grows about 3 meter tall and has very attractive pink fower; prefers full sunshine.
		Musa rubinea, a new dwarf species! from the mountains at the borders to Myanmar; extremely rare, only very limited availability; species is presently under cultivation for larger quantities	easy to cultivate either as a pot plant indoors or in the garden; grows under full sunshine only to about 1 meter tall and has very attractive ruby red flower; tolerates both full sunshine or shade.
		Musa yunnanensis, a new species! Yunnan Wild Banana Wild tropical mountain forest Banana; the most cold tolerant of all our Musa species; can tolerate mild frost.	easy to cultivate; grows about 3 to 5 meter tall and has attractive red stem; prefers slight shade of trees.
		Musella lasiocarpa Golden Lotus banana THE Banana! A sacred flower of Buddhism All our plants are NOT from tissue culture and grew up in their natural climate and environment: you will see the difference!	the best of all! Easy to cultivate; grows about 1 meter tall and has attractive thick succulent stem; prefers sunlight. We cultivate this endemic species together with mountain farmers of ethnic minorities of the Upper Mekong river. This dwarf banana can be used as an indoor plant, for the garden or as design plant in landscaping. Flowers for up to 1 year! please note that mature plants in Europe and the US are available from our partners.
Orchidaceae		ORCHIDS a world of fascinating species from China and Thailand opens through this link	Our orchids from China are cold tolerant and can take mild frost. They can be kept in the garden in many parts of Europe and the Southern parts of the USA. We also design orchids on special objects. Please contact us for contract growing arrangements.
Taccaceae		Tacca chinensis Chinese Tiger whisker A very unusual plant for a shady corner of the garden or as indoor decoration	requires full shade and a moist summer season or watering; very unusual flowers.
Zingiberaceae, Gingers		Alpinia conchigera a strongly fragrant species with a cascade of small white flowers, which attract bees and butterflies; keeps leaves in winter; our most cold tolerant ginger species.	easy to cultivate, leaves have looks of small bamboo and are perennial. Leaves grow to app. 4 meter tall.
		Alpinia sp. "Queen's scepter" an unidentified beauty, very rare.	requires light shade; leaves are tall and beautiful, app. 3 meter tall.
		Alpinia platychilus "King's scepter" by far the most outstanding of our gingers! very rare.	requires light shade; leaves are extra tall and beautiful; flowers magnificent! Grows up to 5 meter tall leaves.
		Amomum maximum	easy to cultivate, leaves have looks of small bamboo and are perennial, 3 meter tall.
		Amomum tsao-ko	easy to cultivate, leaves have looks of small bamboo and are perennial, 2 meter tall.
		Costus lacerus A large spiralling species with a great trumpet flower	easy to cultivate, leaves are spiralling, app. 2 meter tall, and are perennial. Flowers are beautiful large trumpets.
		Globba racemosa "Dancing Girl Ginger" this smallest of all gingers makes a charming indoor pot plant;	requires the shade of other plants; grows to 30 cm and covers ground in summer; no leaves during winter.
		Hedychium coronarium	easy to cultivate, leaves are perennial and about 1.5 meter tall. Flowers are beautiful and have nice scent.
		Hedychium flavescens	easy to cultivate, leaves are perennial and about 1.5 meter tall. Flowers are beautiful and have nice scent.
Cut and dried flowers		Cut flowers
Decor plant material		Decor plant material for flower arrangements
Certificates	Plant Health Certificate	this certificate is required for all shipments: it certifies that the plants are free of potentially dangerous microbes and pests.	please note that the health certificate is needed for all countries.
	Species Certificate		quantities can be changed during checkout; UPS shipping cost are calculated during checkout by UPS

Many of our mature plants are now available individually and on wholesale in:

GERMANY
from
TropicalPlants.de
Hagenbach (Karlsruhe)
Germany

USA
wholesale from
Worldwide Orchids
P.O.Box 2188, Apopka, Florida 32704
Tel: (407) 884-8600

individual sale from
Worldplants
16065 SW Oldsville Road, McMinnville, Oregon 97128
(503) 472-6215

Please contact our partners in Europe and the US for purchase or reservation. See the descriptors of presently traded species also in French and German. Thank you for visiting us.

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