The genus was named by Sir Josef Banks after Charlotte Sophia (1744 – 1818) Princess of Mecklenburg- Strelitz and Queen of Great Britain.
Each flower bud contains 4-5 single blossoms which open successively. The Bird of Paradise Flower is an evergreen subshrub with banana-like leafs. The flowers consist of 3 brilliant orange sepals, standing up like a crest on a bird’s head, and 3 shimmering peacock-blue petals, 2 of which are joined together to form an arrow-like nectary.
A popular long-lasting cut flower, but plants grown from seed may take several years to reach flowering size. Due to its weight and hence the transport cost, the exported cut flower achieves such a high price.