Healing herbs

Healing herbs
Echinacea and Calendula

Monday 21 March 2011

Growing Ginger Root - Zingiber Officinale (True Ginger)

from tropicalpermaculture: 'The easiest way to get started growing ginger root is to get a few fresh rhizomes of someone who does grow ginger, at the time when the plant re-shoots anyway (early spring). Otherwise just buy some at the shops at that time.

Make sure you select fresh, plump rhizomes.

Look for pieces with well developed "eyes" or growth buds. (The buds look like little horns at the end of a piece or "finger")

Some people recommend to soak the rhizomes in water over night. That's not a bad idea, since shop bought ginger might have been treated with a growth retardant.

I also read the advice to sit rhizomes in water until they sprout roots. That's nonsense. Your ginger plant will be much happier if the roots are in the ground and can breathe right from the start, rather than having to deal with the transplanting shock and the change in conditions. If the ground is moist and warm they will root very easily.

Whether you grow your ginger root in a pot or in the ground, you do need really good soil to start with. It needs to be rich enough to feed your ginger (you can always add some fertiliser, see below), it needs to hold enough moisture so it doesn't dry out, but it needs to be free draining so the ginger roots don't become water logged.

Good compost is of course ideal. I use a mix of one part of my best compost with one part of my sandy garden soil. The compost supplies the nutrition and holds water, and the sand/loam makes sure the mix drains freely.

If your garden has reasonable soil just dig in some compost and that should be good enough. If your soil is too heavy you can make a raised bed or a small hill or ridge to improve drainage...'

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