Alpinia officinarum

Botanical Description

Lesser galangal is a herbaceous, perennial plant producing a clump of leafy stems 100 - 150cm tall from an underground, copiously branched, creeping rhizome[ 418 Title Ecocrop Publication Author Website http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available. ]. The hard, shining, dark brown to black rhizomes are 8 - 12mm in diameter[ 418 Title Ecocrop Publication Author Website http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available. ]. The plant has been used as a medicine and spice for well over 1,000 years, having arrived in Europe from China in about the 9th century[ 254 Title The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Publication Author Chevallier. A. Publisher Dorling Kindersley. London Year 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148 Description An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world. ]. It is cultivated throughout the tropics of Asia as a spice and medicinal plant[ 254 Title The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Publication Author Chevallier. A. Publisher Dorling Kindersley. London Year 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148 Description An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world. ].