I posted a single photo of this plant a couple weeks ago, and it didn't get identified. So I'm trying again, including a better description and more photos.
This plant germinated in the spring when I sowed lettuce seeds into a soil mix that was mainly homemade compost. I originally thought it was corn, so I attempted to pull it out, but the stalk snapped cleanly off just beneath the soil line, and I didn't bother digging out the root. Apparently, the "stump" continued to grow and also sent out a new shoot, which grew into the plant you see now (in the close-up shot of the pink/white rhizome, you can see the original stalk on the left, the main plant in the middle, and an even newer shoot starting on the right).
I put a white posterboard behind it to try to get the camera to focus on the leaves instead of the background. The leaves grow in an alternating pattern, and the veins fan out slightly from the midrib and run almost parallel to it. The leaves average 8 inches long by 1 inch wide, and they release a lemon scent when rubbed. Notice that the plant has a distinct "front" and "back" — the tops of the leaves are facing more forward than upward.
by ecohoarder
4 Comments
Appears to be a type of ginger
Kinda looks like ginger to me
GINGER PLANT
It’s definitely a ginger plant