common turmeric

Also known as: turmeric

An upright tropical, herbaceous perennial producing stems to 1m (39in) high which grow from underground fleshy rhizomes. The leaves are alternate and appear in opposite rows along the stem. They are thin and oblong to lance-shaped, with pointed tips and are dark green above and light green below. Yellow to white tubular flowers appear in a cupped rosette bracts at the end of the flowering stem. The plant has been cultivated for thousands of years for the spice turmeric which is derived from the rhizome. As a result it has become totally domesticated over time and unable to set fruit, meaning that its reproduction can only be achieved vegetatively from dividing its rhizomes.