Zingiber kelabitianum(Zingiberaceae): a new species from Borneo

Zingiber kelabitianum from Sarawak, Borneo is described. This new species belongs to section Zingiber, having radical, erect inflorescences. It is related to Z. pachysiphon B.L. Burtt & R.M. Sm. in the large size of the plant and the robust, cylindrical inflorescences with deflexed bracts. It differs in the dense, yellow-brown indumentum of the leaf sheath and ligules, the bright red bracts, the longer bracteole and the free, well-developed lateral lobes of the labellum. The traditional uses of the plant by the indigenous people, the Kelabits, are described.