The one with the pine cone thing is actually called pine cone ginger. I am curious too, which one is the edible one.

i have also wondered about this.
maybe someone will come along with more info about which types are best for eating.

you might try starting store bought ginger, usually you can get this to grow. i have seen two types in the store, the common fat type that we all know and a skinnier version that was being called "Hawaiian ginger" which was very much like the other kind in taste. i have gotten those to start but being just out its comfort zone being a bit cold it died in the winter.

now i am thinking i might try again but in pots so they could be protected in the winter....

Tumeric is curcuma longa which sounds similar to your first description except the flower is white not pink. Shampoo ginger which is what your second plant sounds like isn't edible to my knowledge. A liquid can be squeezed out of the cones and used as soap or shampoo. I love this plant but it really doesn't produce very much.

Be careful with common names. I have heard many gingers called hawaiian ginger.

How would I start store bought ginger? Thanks

I have found that ginger from an Indian grocery store starts sprouting when sitting on my kitchen counter. I placed some of these shoots in the garden during the summer and plants grew. Sadly, the ginger plants did not like being in a pot in my house for the winter and did not thrive. I will try ginger root sprouts again next spring outside in a sunny area. Ginger from the traditional grocery store appears to sprout less and I am guessing that a sprouting inhibitor chemical is the reason.

I just grabbed ginger from my local wholefoods store (wegmans) and made sure it was the organic variety and I tried with the standard stuff and I think they spray it with growth inhibitors like potatoes. Within a month I had three foot tall plants, which now are dormant as I grow them in a zone 11 greenhouse that Got hit by a tree in a storm, lol.

I'm not saying either of your ginger varieties are edible, but IF one of them were, it's probably the first one that smells like Pinesol. I would guess it smells and tastes that way because of the age of the rhizome. (What we refer to as ginger "root" is actually the rhizome of the plant.) There are two different schools of thought. Some homegrowers collect rhizomes before the plants flower, at about 8-9 months old at the latest, but sometimes you can harvest as early as 4 months. Others say to harvest once all the growth has died back for the winter. It'll look like your plant is dead, but really it's dormant. The roots are still alive and that is what counts.

Dig up the plant and you will see stringy things coming off the bottom of the bulbous part - those are the actual roots. Anyways, while it's dug up, harvest some of the rhizome and pick a healthy-looking part with lots of eyes to replant - it'll sprout in spring so you keep your ginger stock going. Try this with the pinesol variety and see if your rhizomes come out a little more like traditional ginger. One thing to remember is that homemade/grown things always taste a little different than store-bought ones.

To sprout storebought ginger, soak it overnight in water. This helps remove any growth inhibitors that may have been sprayed - and yes, even organic ginger can be sprayed with organic growth inhibitors! "Organic" simply means the compound is found naturally, not that it isn't applied and isn't harmful to your health.

After soaking overnight, plant part (or all) of the rhizome in a bit of really nutritious soil - preferably loaded with compost. You want to give these babies as many nutrients as possible. The important part is to make sure the section you plant has at least 2 eyes. They look similar to eyes on a potato. Those are where the growth sprouts from. It sounds like past that, you don't have an issue getting the plant to grow.

Even though in its native regions, ginger is an evergreen, in northern climates, it is a perennial, so it dies back in the winter and respouts in the spring without you doing anything. Do NOT water it once it has gone dormant or the rhizomes may rot in the soil and you won't get new shoots come warmer weather. I would assume those that claim their ginger died in winter actually just had dormant ginger and would have seen new growth in the spring.

Hope this helps!