Common name : Bird of paradise
Scientific name: Strelitzia reginae
Family: Strelitziaceae
 Type of Plant: houseplant, evergreen perennial, flowering plant
 Native Origin: South Africa, specifically the Cape Provinces and Eastern coast.
 Bird-of-paradise flower, (Strelitzia reginae), ornamental plantof the family Strelitziaceae native to South Africa. The plant is grown outdoors in warm climates and as a houseplant for its attractive foliage and unusual flowers. It is named for its resemblance to the showy forest birds known as birds-of-paradise Bird-of-paradise are hardy, drought-tolerant plants that are easy to grow, especially in warm climates, and they are used extensively as ornamental landscape plants. They can also be grown as indoor houseplants in cold areas. The flowers are a staple for florists in creating exotic and tropical arrangements, not only for their looks but also because they are long lasting—up to two weeks. The most famous and noticeable part of bird-of-paradise is its flowers. Set atop long stalks that can reach five feet in height, the flowers have a complex structure with bright colors and copious nectar to entice their bird pollinators. A green, red, or purplish canoe-shaped bract (a modified leaf, also called a spathe) forms on the stalk, and it opens along its top edge to reveal the flower petals, stamens, and prominent stigma that unfold from inside the sheath. The flowers typically bloom from September through May. The bird-of-paradise flower grows from rhizomes (underground stems) to a height of 1 to 1.5 metres (about 3 to 5 feet). It has stiff, erect, leathery, concave, and oblong leaves borne on a long petiole (leafstalk). The leaves are bluish green in colour and may have a red midrib. The orange and blue flower has two erect pointed petals and five stamens. One main flower bract, shaped like a boat, is green with red borders.