Kingdom : Plantae

Clade: Angiosperms

Order: Poales

Family : Poaceae

Subfamily : Panicoideae

Genus : Cymbopogon

Species: C. citratus

Habitat

Cymbopogon citratus can be found cultivated and naturalized throughout the tropics and warm subtropics, in warm and humid habitats and along roadsides.

Description: Lemon grass is a tall, perennial sedge throwing up dense fascicles of leaves from a short rhizome. The culm is stout, erect, upto 1.8 meter high. Leaves are long, glaucous, green, linear tapering upwards and along the margins; ligule very short; sheaths terete, those of the barren shoots widened and tightly clasping at the base, others narrow and separating. It is a short day plant and produce profuse flowering in South India. The inflorescence is a long spike about one metre in length. Flowers borne on decompound spatheate, panicles 30 to over 60 cm long. Strongly scented lemon leaves used in India and Southern Asian cuisine; overwinter as a container plant but do not let it dry out.  This plant tolerates a range of soil types. The plant oils are used for perfumes and herbal medicines.