https://www.pitara.com/tags/fragrant-plants/Recent content in Fragrant Plants on Pitara Kids NetworkHugoen-usSat, 13 Jun 2026 21:46:31 +0530https://www.pitara.com/science-for-kids/planet-earth-for-kids/what-is-vetiver-grass/Mon, 02 Dec 2002 03:01:55 +0000https://www.pitara.com/science-for-kids/planet-earth-for-kids/what-is-vetiver-grass/<p>If you ask someone what vetiver is, chances are that you might get a blank look. But mention the word <em>khus</em>, and most people will be all-smiles. For this grass have the sweetest and coolest fragrance that beat the summer heat. That is why for centuries Indians have had vetiver or khus mats and screens in their homes. A steady sprinkle of water is enough to keep the hot summer wind out.</p> <p>Chrysopogon zizanioides, commonly known as vetiver found abundantly in India, is of Asian origin. It gets its name from the Tamil word ‘vetriver’, meaning root. From India it travelled to the West Indies, Fiji and Africa, where a new use was found for it – as a sponge to hold the soil in place and prevent erosion, according to a report by the Academy for Mountain Environics, an NGO based in Dehra Dun, in north India. Creating environmentally sustainable technologies at the local level, is its main concern.</p>