Zingiber zerumbet ‘Variegata’

The shampoo ginger, Zingiber zerumbet, has dramatic tropical foliage with light yellow edges in ‘Variegata’. The leaves are paddle-like and fragrant usually rising to four feet tall and, in late summer, cone-like inflorescences that begin green and then age to bright red revealing occasional small white to yellowish flowers. The mature cones contain a clear, slimy juice that can be used as a shampoo that makes the hair softer and shinier. The leaves and stems have also traditionally been used to flavour pork and fish when baked in underground ovens. It is potentially hardy in coastal BC (to zone 7b) requiring a warm location with rich soil and constant moisture in summer with drier soils and a thick mulch of fallen leaves in winter. In colder zones grow in a pot and bring inside as a houseplant or lift the rhizomes and store in a cool place.