Zingiber macradenia or the Chocolate Beehive Ginger is a clumping, herbaceous perennial that produces unusual rich brown inflorescences held aloft on stiff, short stalks.
These are spectacular plants that add a distinctly tropical touch to warmer climate gardens, though they can grow in more southerly states providing they are located in a warm and sheltered location with no danger of frost.
As with all gingers they grow from rhizomes and become dormant over the cooler months, foliage dying back to re-shoot in springtime.