Ginger is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is a herbaceous perennial which grows annual pseudostems about one meter tall bearing narrow leaf blades. The inflorescences bear flowers having pale yellow petals with purple edges, and arise directly from the rhizome on separate shoots.
Thymus serpyllum, known by the common names of Breckland thyme, Breckland wild thyme, wild thyme, creeping thyme, or elfin thyme, is a species of flowering plant in the mint family Lamiaceae, native to most of Europe and North Africa. It is a low, usually prostrate subshrub growing to 2 cm (1 in) tall with creeping stems up to 10 cm (4 in) long. The oval evergreen leaves are 3–8 mm long. The strongly scented flowers are either lilac, pink-purple, magenta, or a rare white, all 4–6 mm long and produced in clusters. The hardy plant tolerates some pedestrian traffic and produces odors ranging from heavily herbal to lightly lemon, depending on the variety.
Edible plant stems are one part of plants that are eaten by humans. Most plants are made up of stems, roots, leaves, flowers, and produce fruits containing seeds. Humans most commonly eat the seeds, fruit, flowers, leaves, roots, and stems of many plants. There are also a few edible petioles such as celery or rhubarb.
Asarum europaeum, commonly known as asarabacca, European wild ginger, hazelwort, and wild spikenard, is a species of flowering plant in the birthwort family Aristolochiaceae, native to large parts of temperate Europe, and also cultivated in gardens. It is a creeping evergreen perennial with glossy green, kidney shaped leaves and solitary dull purple flowers hidden by the leaves. Though its roots have a ginger aroma, it is not closely related to the true culinary ginger Zingiber officinale, which originates in tropical Asian rainforests. It is sometimes harvested for use as a spice or a flavoring. In former days, it was used in snuff and also medicinally as an emetic and cathartic.
Zingiber zerumbet is a species of plant in the ginger family with leafy stems growing to about 1.2 m (3.9 ft) tall. It originates from Asia, but can be found in many tropical countries. Common names include: awapuhi, bitter ginger, shampoo ginger and pinecone ginger.
Alpinia officinarum, known as lesser galangal, is a plant in the ginger family, cultivated in Southeast Asia. It originated in China, where its name ultimately derives. It can grow 1.5 to 2 m high, with long leaves and reddish-white flowers. The rhizomes, known as galangal, are valued for their sweet spicy flavor and aromatic scent. These are used throughout Asia in curries and perfumes, and were previously used widely in Europe. They are also used as an herbal remedy.
Asarum canadense, commonly known as Canada wild ginger, Canadian snakeroot, and broad-leaved asarabacca, is a herbaceous, perennial plant which forms dense colonies in the understory of deciduous forest throughout its native range in eastern North America, from the Great Plains east to the Atlantic Coast, and from southeastern Canada south to around the Fall Line in the southeastern United States.
Asarum caudatum is native to rich moist forests of western North America from British Columbia to California and as far east as western Montana. It is an evergreen with flowers that develop from March to August. The flowers are distinct, hirsute (hairy), cup-shaped, and brown-purple to green-yellow which terminate in three, long, gracefully curved lobes, often concealed by leaves. The long rhizomes give rise to persistent reniform leaves. Leaves are found in colonies or clusters as the rhizome spreads, forming mats. The leaves emit a ginger aroma when rubbed.
Asarum lemmonii is a species of wild ginger which is endemic to California. It is known by the common name Lemmon's wild ginger.
Brabejum is a genus of a single species of large evergreen tree, Brabejum stellatifolium in the family Proteaceae, commonly called wild almond, bitter almond or ghoeboontjie. It is restricted in the wild to South Africa's Western Cape province, where it grows in thickets along the banks of streams. The plant is of botanical interest as being Africa's only member of the large grevilleoid subfamily. It is a bushy small tree with branches widely at ground level and numerous erect vigorous stems. Leaves grow up to 6 in (15 cm) long, narrow and bluntly toothed, appear at intervals along the branches, mostly in whorls of 6. In summer, the plant bears white flowers densely crowded on spikes arising from rusty buds at the leaf axils. The fruits to 2 in (5 cm) long, magenta to reddish brown, similar to an almond, appear in autumn. The nut is too bitter to eat; however, in earlier times it was boiled, roasted, and ground to make a "coffee" drink.
Persoonia asperula, commonly known as mountain geebung, is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is an erect or prostrate shrub with smooth bark, mostly elliptic to oblong leaves and yellow flowers borne singly or in groups of up to nine. It mostly occurs in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. A small population in Victoria may be a different species.
Hakea macrocarpa, commonly known as dogwood hakea, is a shrub or tree in the family Proteaceae. It has cream-yellow flowers from May to June and is endemic to Western Australia.
Leucospermum cuneiforme is an upright evergreen shrub with many pustules growing on the lower branches, wedge-shaped leaves, and oval, initially yellow flower heads that later turn orange, with long styles sticking far beyond the perianths, jointly giving the impression of a pincushion. It is called wart-stemmed pincushion in English and luisiesbos (lice-bush) in Afrikaans. The species is common in the southern mountains of South Africa.
Leucospermum grandiflorum is an evergreen, upright shrub of up to 2½ m high that is assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has elliptic, greyish green, softly hairy leaves and initially egg-shaped heads with yellow flowers, later flatter with flowers turning orange. From the center of each flower emerges a long pale yellow style with a pink thickened tip that is bent slightly clockwise, giving the entire head the appearance of a pincushion. Its flowers can be found between July and December. It is called grey-leaf fountain-pincushion or rainbow pincushion in English. L. grandiflorum is an endemic species that can only be found in nature in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum formosum is a large upright shrub of up to 3 m (10 ft) high, from the family Proteaceae. It grows from a single trunk and its branches are greyish felty. The softly felty leaves are lance-shaped to elliptic, 6½–10 cm long and 14–20 mm (0.56–0.80 in) wide. The flower heads are flattened and about 15 cm (6 in) across, and consist of bright yellow flowers from which long, styles emerge which are strongly clockwise bent just below the white, later pink thickened tip. From above, the heads look like turning wheels. It is called silver-leaf wheel-pincushion in English. It flowers during September and October. It is an endemic species of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum arenarium is a lax, evergreen shrub, with arching and drooping branches, that has been assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has loosely spaced, upright, greyish, narrowly egg-shaped to line-shaped leaves, mostly without teeth and flattened globe-shaped flower heads of 5–7 cm across, consisting of mostly creamy, seldom yellow flowers, that curve in the bud to the center of the head. From the center of the flowers emerge curved styles that jointly give the impression of a pincushion. The common name in English is Redelinghuys pincushion. It only occurs in a very small area in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It flowers between July and October. Unlike in related species the flowers are pollinated by hairy-footed gerbils and striped field mice.
Vexatorella obtusata is an evergreen shrub, with narrow, leathery leaves and about 2 cm big, globular flowerheads consisting of well scented, creamy pink flowers, from which a long style with a thickened tip extends. Two subspecies are distinguished, both restricted to different parts of the Western Cape province of South Africa. The creeping V. obtusata subsp. obtusata, also known as the Montagu vexator flowers from September to December, and the upright V. obtusata subsp. albomontana, also known as the Witteberg vexator, that has flowers between August and November.
Protea pendula, also known as the nodding sugarbush or arid sugarbush, is a flowering plant of the genus Protea, in the family Proteaceae, which is only found growing in the wild in the Cape Region of South Africa. In the Afrikaans language it is known as knikkopsuikerbossie or ondersteboknopprotea.
Protea angustata, also known as the Kleinmond sugarbush, is a flowering shrub that belongs to the genus Protea. This plant is endemic to the south-west Cape Region of South Africa.
Larsenianthus is a genus of monocotyledonous plants in the ginger family (Zingiberaceae). The genus was established in 2010. The four or so species are native to the area of the eastern Himalayas.
