Zingiber

A collection by the Wynn-Jones from Crug Farm of this prized Asian culinary species from the Korean island of Jejudo, formerly Cheju island. This is a culinary ginger but it is the deep yellow flower buds that are eaten which open to lilac-pink flowers held at ground level. The deciduous corn-like leaves get about 3' tall and this is hardy to zone 6 and even zone 5. The other clone of Zingiber mioga we offer has been grown successfully in Kansas.

From Asia, where in the autumn, the 30" pseudostems with their broad sword-like leaves had fallen to the ground exposing the bright red starfish fruiting capsules nested in the dark earth. The late summer flowers sit right at ground level like little yellow orchids with a tinge of pink to the labellum and flowers weeks later than our MD10-77 collection.This looks close to mioga but there are 43 Zingiber species in China alone. True Zingiber mioga is hardy in Kansas which blows our minds.

Our collection from Asia of what we presume to be the super-hardy Zingiber mioga but there are a lot of species to choose from! Corn foliage and cute ground-level soft yellow orchid flowers at ground level which are a worthy reward for a deep bend at the waist. These flower weeks earlier than our CDHM 14723 collection and have a wider labellum with the whole flower evenly colored. A worthy reward for a deep bend at the waist.

Mioga Ginger. A treasured food crop in Japan where the new shoots are prized as a vegetable and the flower buds are considered a delicacy when diced and added to soup. This is a true ginger although it lacks the big rhizome of the culinary variety. What it does have over the gingerbread ginger is hardiness. This is the hardiest of the Zingibers and our friend Aaron Floden tells us he grew this in Kansas without any special protection and temperatures regularly got to -15F and it did not suffer. This clumps up quickly in rich moist soil in shade with 3' green leafy stems and produces exotic small orchid-like creamy yellow flowers at ground level in late summer and fall. It's a no-brainer for fall cleanup because the leaf stalks turn yellow and fall over breaking off cleanly from the crown so all you have to do is pick them up. Or not if you are into self-mulching plants.