Awapuhi Shampoo Ginger Plant (Zingiber zerumbet)

About the Awapuhi Shampoo Ginger Plant (Zingiber zerumbet)

Awapuhi, or shampoo ginger, is the ginger Hawaiians traditionally squeezed for its fragrant, slippery sap. In late summer it sends up short stalks topped with pinecone-like heads that start green and slowly turn bright red; the cones fill with a clear, aromatic liquid that people have long used to rinse and soften hair. The leafy stems are lush and fragrant when crushed. It is tough and easy, going dormant in the dry season and returning with the rains. Available as a rhizome, a potted young plant or a flowering-size clump.

How to Care for It

To plant a rhizome, lay it horizontally 3–5 cm deep in loose, compost-rich, well-drained soil with the buds facing up, water once and keep it barely moist until shoots appear; too much water before then can rot it. Grow in sun to partial shade. It may die back in the dry or cool season; reduce watering until new shoots return. Feed monthly while growing and mulch to keep the roots cool and moist.

Sculptural flowers, fragrant blooms and edible rhizomes. Our tropical gingers include beehive ginger (awapuhi) in golden, red, pink and chocolate, shampoo ginger, red and pink torch ginger, red ginger, shell and butterfly ginger, plus culinary ginger and turmeric. Sold as rhizomes, potted plants or flowering clumps.

Growing Profile

Botanical name

Zingiber zerumbet

Family

Zingiberaceae

Native to

India and Southeast Asia; carried across the Pacific to Hawaii, where it is called awapuhi

Mature height

1–2 m

Plant spacing

1 m

Time to first flowers

1–1.5 years

Light

Sun to part shade

Water

Moderate

Cold tolerance

down to 2 °C

Best climates

Humid tropics, Dry tropics, Subtropical

Grows in a pot

Yes

Ships from

Our farms in Yucatán & Chiapas