It’s great for a plant to have a unique trait that makes it standout and often it gets named after that trait. However, when you are the Zingiber with the thinnest stems and tightest clumping habit in the world, your a dwarf easily grown and bloomed in a quart size pot, you bloom on top of every stem instead of from the ground, you hare purple flowers, and are new to science its only fitting you get named after a princess. Zingiber sirindhorniae is a relatively new discovery from Loei, Thailand. Images of this beautiful and unique species became floating around the ginger world early 2010’s. It was published rather fast given the snail’s pace it often takes. In 2016 this new species was officially published as Zingiber sirindhorniae after Her Royal Highness Princess Sirindhorn of Thailand.
Despite growing in pockets of humus on limestock rocks it has proven to do perfectly fine in regular potting mix (with good drainage). Due to the small size of these plants I have not tested them in the ground yet. Rhizomes are easily stored over winter until late spring. The are very tight clumpers and one could have 20 stems in a 6″ pot. They have been displayed as hanging basket plants as well and the long very thin stems can gracefully arch outwards. The inflorescences are borne on top of each stem and purple light to dark purple flowers speckled with white. Very rare and a Gingerwood Nursery introduction and exclusive.
Hardiness untested, grows to 1.5-2 feet in filtered shade.