Commemorating Bartolommeo Maranti (fl. 1559) Venetian physicist and botanist.

Erect or prostrate herbs, the stems often thin and branched. Leaves generally variegated. Flower clusters a spike, raceme or panicle, the bracts in 2 rows. Sterile stamens 2, petal-like. Ovary 1- chambered with 1 ovule. Fruit nut-like.

Ornamental, mostly variegated, indoor tropical plants.

Division and cuttings.

The starchy rhizome of M. arundinacea, Arrowroot, is the source of tapioca as well as a range of other commercial applications including fuel-alcohol and fibre.

Ovary 1-chambered and containing 1 ovule; flower tube elongated.

 20-30 species from tropical America.

Andersson (1986).

Source: Spencer, R. (2005). Marantaceae. In: Spencer, R.. Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 5. Flowering plants. Monocotyledons. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.