Enchanting bird of paradise flower by Silva Wischeropp

I discovered this wonderful, proud and colourful strelitzia in the greenhouse of the Blankenfelde-Pankow Botanical Park.
The photo was taken on 17 April 2016 in the late afternoon hours with the NIKON D90 camera (lens: SIGMA 18.0-50.0 mm f/2.8).

The bird of paradise flower (Strelitzia reginae), also known as the royal strelitzia, queen strelitzia or parrot flower, is a plant species from the Strelitzia genus (Strelitzia) within the Strelitziaceae family.

The bird of paradise flower is an evergreen, perennial, herbaceous plant that grows to a height of 80 to 200 centimetres. With its branched rhizomes, it forms clump-like stands. The basal leaves resemble those of bananas and are 0.25 to 1 metre long. Their simple, elongated, smooth-edged blades measure 25 to 50 × 10 to 26 centimetres.

The bird of paradise flower is widely used as an ornamental plant in containers, parks and on terraces, as well as a cut flower. It has been in cultivation since 1733 at the latest. The cultivar 'Humilis' (also known as 'Pygmaea') grows up to 80 centimetres tall and grows in dense groups. The outer perigone leaves of the variety 'Mandela's Gold' are yellow.

At the Easter mass with Pope Francis on 21 April 2019, St Peter's Square in Rome was decorated with around 55,000 flowers, including 1,500 bird of paradise flowers.