Aromatic, pungent, and spicy ginger is perfect in baked goods, candies, Asian dishes, and a very healthy medicinal herb. Ginger has many evidence-based health benefits. It has a broad-spectrum of antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, and anti-parasitic properties, to name just several of its more than 40 pharmacological actions. Learn how to grow ginger in your home, and you will always have fresh, tender, and fiberless ginger root on hand.
How togrow Ginger in your home?
Being a tropical plant, it does not tolerate frost, so unless you live in a warm, humid climate, it’s best to grow ginger in a pot indoors. Ginger grows well in partial to full shade, which makes it ideal for growing in your home. Ginger is a no-fuss plant, plus it is very pretty with its bamboo-like green shoots and leaves.
1. You can usestore-bought ginger root
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Make sure that the ginger root you choose is organic and isplump with tight skin. Your best bet is the roots withseveral eye buds on them (like little horns or potato eyes), and if they’re already slightly green,evenbetter.Ginger you can find in the grocery store is oftensprayed with chemicals like growth inhibitors, pesticides, and fungicides.
To get rid of these chemicals, soak the ginger root overnight in warm water for a minimum of 2-3 hours. After this, your ginger root is ready for planting.
2. Plant the rootsinto containers
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Cut the root (rhizome) into smaller pieces; each should have agrowthbudon them and plant them all. Make sure to use really good soil, a good potting mix. It must be rich enough to feed your ginger. It must be free draining, but it has to hold moisture.
Choose a shallow and wide pot or a larger container, depending on how many roots you are planting. Fill thecontainer nearly full with soil and plant the ginger an inch or two beneath the soil. Make sure that the eye buds arefacing up!
3. Ginger is a slow starter plant
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Keep the pot in a warm place and keep the soil moist. Make sure it doesn’t get too much bright sunlight. When it comes to growing ginger, plants are quite slow. Every root you have planted will eventuallygrow a few leaves in one spot.
After a couple of weeks, you will see the shoots popping up out of the soil. Continue to water them regularly; you can use a spray bottle to mist them.
4. After a few months, you will have a pretty plant
Ginger grown indoors will eventually reach a height of 2 feetin a container and may reacha height of 2 to 3 feet in the garden. The great thing about growing ginger that it doesn’t take up much room at all, and it does look pretty like a houseplant in your home.
5. What your plant needs
Ginger needs a lot of moisture, especially while actively growing. Never let the soil dry out, but also make sure not to overwater it because the water can drain away from the nutrients. The other thing this plant loves is humidity. With regular spraying and misting, you can keep the air moist enough. Dry air can cause problems with spider mites. Use some naturalliquid fertilizersuch as seaweed extract or fish fertiliser every few weeks.
6. When to harvest your ginger
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The best part of the whole process has finally arrived. You can already start stealing little bits of your plantonce it is about four months old, but the longer you can keep the plant growing, the larger your harvest will be. Pull aside some of the soil at the pot’s edges to find some roots beneath the surface and cut off the needed amount. Ginger can be harvested endlessly, and as long as it is well cared for, it will continue to produce roots.
7. Ifyou need a larger harvest…
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If you need a larger harvest, you can tip out the entire plant. Break up the roots and select a few nice oneswith good growing buds for replanting, and then you canstart the whole process over again.
8. How to divide your plant
If you would like to have more pots of ginger plants or would like to share them with friends, the plantcan be simply divided. Pull aside the soul at the edge, and cut off one root that has leaves. Plant it in a separate smaller container. If you notice new ‘buds’ forming at the top of the roots separate them and plant them for even more ginger!
9. Theleaves and shoots are edible as well
Did you know that the ginger leaves and shoots are edible as well? They are not as commonly used as the roots, but their milder ginger flavor is worth trying. Once you have your own ginger plant, you can use the green parts as aflavorful garnishjust like chives orspring onions.
10. Why bother growing your own?
First of all, because it’s fun and simple, second because there is a significant difference between homegrown young ginger and the ginger you find at the supermarket, the old ginger (bottom left corner on the photo) is often dried out, woody, and very spicy. Young ginger is far superior, finer in texture, less fibrous, quite tender; it has more sweetness and abrighter herbal flavor. Plus the your own ginger will certainly be free of chemicals.
