Common ginger used for cooking comes from a tropical plant you could grow at home.
Ginger is one of the oldest documented spicesits been used for centuries for seasoning Asian and Indian dishes.
Its a familiar ingredient in todays kitchens, its warm flavor enhances many dishesfrom curriesand stews togingerbreadandbeer.
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It also makes a refreshing tea.
Its available dried and ground, but its flavor is far more impressive when you use the fresh root.
Ginger hails from the tropical forests of Southeast Asia, where itgrows as a herbaceous perennial.
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Its bamboolike shoots bear narrow, glossy, bright green leaves.
It is sensitive to cold and needs a bit of shade, but otherwise its easy to grow.
Even if you grow a single ginger plant, youll have lots offresh ginger for all your favorite recipes.
Where to Plant Ginger
Ginger can be grown year-round as a houseplant or outside in warm weather.
It makes a great patio container plant and can be brought indoors before the weather turns cold in fall.
Fill it within a couple inches of the top with a well-draining potting soil.
Keep it moist but not soggy.
It will send up shoots after a few weeks.
You canplant a ginger root indoorsany time of year if you are growing it as a houseplant.
Do not move plants outdoors until night temperatures are above 55F.
If you live in a very warm climate, ginger can be grown outdoors all year.
Light
As an indoor plant, grow ginger in bright indirect light.
Outdoors it will grow best in part shade, especially withsome protection from afternoon sun.
If planting ginger in the ground,add plenty of compostto help retain water and improve drainage.
If growing it in a container, use a high quality potting mix.
Keep the soil evenly moist.
Never let the soil dry out completely, but avoid overwatering, which may cause rhizomes to rot.
Outdoors, alayer of mulch will help keep soil evenly moist.
Reduce watering as you approach harvest time (as leaves begin to die back).
Bring potted plants indoors before temperatures drop below 55F.
Fertilizer
Ginger is a heavy feeder.
Incorporate a slow-release fertilizer into the garden soil or potting soil at planting time.
Apply a liquid fertilizer such as fish emulsion, or kelp every 3 to 4 weeks.
Mature ginger, with its tan outer skin, is harvested 9 to 10 months after planting.
To harvest, remove the plant from its pot or dig up the entire plant from the ground.
Knock off as much soil as possible then rinse rhizomes thoroughly under running water.
Break the rhizomes into sections and allow them toair dry before storing your ginger root.
Rhizomes can also be dehydrated.
These can usually be removed (or their damage minimized) with a hard spray of cold water.
You may need to repeat this treatment a few times.
Do not allow soil to dry out.
Do not let the soil get soggy.
After harvesting the rhizomes, you might replant a section of the rhizome to start a new ginger plant.
Pinecone ginger (Z. zerumbet), native to India and Southeast Asia is also called shampoo flower.
And gingers upright habit provides a pleasing contrast to rounded or mounding habits of the ornamental annuals.
They dont usually form until the plant is at least 2 years old and they are not particularly ornamental.
Container grown plants rarely flower.
Although it’s not necessary, many cooksprefer to peel gingerto remove some of the fiber.
The skin is safe to consume as long as it has been thoroughly washed.
Allow the plant to rest for about 3 or 4 months, watering only once a month.
In early spring, resume watering regularly as new growth emerges from the rhizomes.
If necessary, repot into a larger container or divide the rhizomes into several plants and pot them separately.
