previously created the genus Roscoea in 1806. It was described from specimens collected by the Danish botanist Nathaniel Wallich. The specific epithet "capitata" has the meaning "forming a dense head", here referring to the way the flowers are borne. In 1901, François Gagnepain described two plants as varieties of this species: R. capitata var. purpurata and R. capitata var. scillifolia. Both are now considered to be separate species, R. cautleyoides and R. scillifolia respectively. Evolution and phylogeny The family Zingiberaceae is mainly tropical in distribution. The unusual mountainous distribution of Roscoea may have evolved relatively recently and be a response to the uplift taking place in the region in the last 50 million years or so due to the collision of the Indian and Asian tectonic plates. Species of Roscoea divide into two clear groups, a Himalayan clade and a "Chinese" clade (which includes some species from outside China). The two clades correspond to a geographical separation, their main distributions being divided by the Brahmaputra River as it flows south at the end of the Himalayan mountain chain. It has been suggested that the genus may have originated in this area and then spread westwards along the Himalayas and eastwards into the mountains of China and its southern neighbours. R. capitata is part of the Himalayan clade, as would be expected from its distribution. It is most closely related to R. ganeshensis. Distribution and habitat Roscoea capitata is native to the eastern Himalayas and in particular central Nepal, where it is said to grow on grassy or stony hillsides and slopes, often on disturbed ground. The Flora of China also gives its distribution as "Xizang" (i.e. Tibet), although this is not supported by other sources. References Bibliography capitata Flora of Nepal Plants described in 1822