Flowers are
urn-shaped, with broad, spreading lobes the
inside of the calyx is mottled violet.
Thick-textured, semi-evergreen
to evergreen leaves are usually mottled with
silver-gray and are about 3 inches wide.
Growth rate is slow.
Wild Ginger and European Evergreen Ginger are not
related to the culinary ginger (Zingiber
officinale) of tropical origin. Their names refer to
the spicy fragrance of the freshly cut or
crushed rhizomes and leaves.
Early settlers were
fond of this plant because it had a flavor
similar to the Old World Ginger. The stems
were dried and pulverized and used for spice, or
sometimes boiled with sugar to make a candied
spice.
