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Classifications of Ginger Plants

Gardening Guide: The Zesty Ginger Guide: All You Need to Know About Growing, Harvesting, Cooking, and Eating Delicious Ginger

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Classifications of Ginger Plants

By Norann Oleson

Edible rhizome of culinary ginger.

Edible rhizome of culinary ginger.

For descriptive growing purposes, ginger is loosely grouped into three classifications—culinary, ornamental, and wild.

Culinary ginger plants produce rhizomes that are good for eating, preserving, cooking, and using in traditional home remedies. The main ginger in that category is common ginger, or Zingiber officinale. Another member of the ginger family is turmeric. We don’t tend to refer to it as a type of ginger, but it grows and develops in much the same fashion. Beyond Southeast Asia, where turmeric is native and has about 80 varieties, there tends to be just one variety—Curcuma longa. We won’t go into great detail in this collection about turmeric; just know that you can apply most of the same planting, growing, and harvesting principles to turmeric as you do to ginger.

Ornamental ginger plants differ from their culinary cousins in two main ways: 1. they frequently produce colorful flowers; and 2. they are often toxic.

Wild ginger plants often carry the name ginger. They may smell like ginger. But they are, in truth, from a different plant family and they are sometimes toxic and/or carcinogenic. First Nations peoples often knew how to use these wild plants to treat a wide array of ailments. But unless you are a skilled ethnobotanist, you should leave these wild plants in the wild.

Which type of ginger plants do you grow—culinary or ornamental? Please tell us why you’ve chosen that type of ginger to grow.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • Curator’s Corner
  • Introduction
  • Feature Articles

  • Types of Ginger Plants
  • Classifications of Ginger Plants
  • Choosing to Grow from “Seed Ginger” or Seedlings
  • Growing Ginger in Open Land, in Containers, or in Raised Beds
  • Starting with the Right Soil for Your Ginger Plants
  • The Right Sunlight for Your Ginger
  • Should You Fertilize Your Ginger Plants?
  • How—and When—to Water Your Ginger Plants
  • How to Spot, Treat, and Prevent Ginger Diseases
  • What to Do About Pests that Can Harm Your Ginger Plants
  • The Right Way to Weed Your Ginger Garden
  • Bringing in the Ginger Harvest
  • Storing and Preserving Your Ginger
  • Essential Tools and Equipment for Growing and Enjoying Ginger
  • Plant Profiles

  • Bitter Ginger
  • Myoga Ginger
  • Beehive Ginger
  • Common Ginger
  • Recipes

  • Sweet Ginger Meatloaf
  • Ginger Maple Chicken
  • Japanese Ginger Salad Dressing
  • Pillow-Soft Ginger Cookies
  • Pickled Ginger
  • Pickled Ginger Carrots
  • Candied Ginger
  • Additional Articles

  • Nutrition Facts about Ginger
  • Home Remedies & Health Benefits of Ginger
  • Resources about Ginger
  • Ginger Glossary
  • Related Articles

  • How to Grow an Indoor Spice Garden
  • All About Planting and Growing Ginger Indoors
  • How to Use Ginger: Adding Spice to Your Life!
  • The Zesty Ginger Guide—All You Need to Know About Growing, Harvesting, Cooking, and Eating Delicious Ginger

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