East Indian Lemon Grass

This type of lemongrass has the narrower leaves.  The plant is used as a fragrance and flavoring agent and in folk medicine as an antispasmodic, hypotensive, anticonvulsant, analgesic, antiemetic, antitussive, antirheumatic, antiseptic and treatment for nervous and gastrointestinal disorders and fevers.

Native to East India, lemongrass has been a significant part of Asian cuisines for a long time. Besides East India, this herb is now commonly cultivated in various regions of Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Indonesia. It is also widely used for medicinal purposes in Indian herbal medicine.

As compared to the West Indian lemongrass plant, the East Indian lemongrass plant is about 1.5 meters long. The plant is denser than the West Indian lemongrass one and has purple-ish stems and stalk. It usually grows in dense areas with clumps that are attached to a hard bulbous base. The plant’s height is approximately about three feet.

The East Indian lemongrass plant bears leaves that are bright green and also have very sharp corners. They look a lot like typical grass with tall green leaves. Fertile soil with good sandy soils and tropical climates are favorable for the growth of this plant.

Ideally, your lemongrass should receive around 6 hours of sunlight daily. The more sunlight your lemongrass gets, the more flavorsome it will be. This is because the sunlight helps the plant to produce more of the oils that produce the lovely lemony flavor and fragrance.

Growing your lemongrass in a nice sunny spot also means that it will grow much faster and produce more of the fat stems that so many people like to use in their Asian cooking. If your plant does not receive enough sunlight, then it might reduce the growth rate, and you’ll get thinner, grassy blades rather than lovely fat stalks.