How to Easily Grow Ginger in Your Backyard
Do you love fresh ginger?
Would you love to have ginger as a part of your garden?
You may think that growing ginger is hard, but it’s actually pretty easy. As long as you know a few tips and tricks, you can grow ginger whether it’s in your backyard or in a container.
Today, we are going to break down how to plant and care for ginger. Before we get into that though, there are a couple of factoids about ginger that we will explain.
- We don’t grow ginger from seeds. According to The Backyard Gardening Blog, we plant the rhizomes or tubers.
- Don’t know what rhizomes are? Don’t worry, it’s the technical name for the ginger root.
- Ginger loves warm weather, hates direct sun and needs moist-rich-soil.
- According to the University of California Davis’ definition of a fruit versus a vegetable, ginger is considered a vegetable.
- Ginger is commonly considered an herb or spice in the culinary world due to its low nutritional value and high flavor.
From Planting to Harvesting and Everything You Need to Know About Ginger
Planting Ginger or Rhizomes
You can plant the same ginger root or rhizomes that you see at the grocery store. Just make sure that you pick a root that has green eye buds.
Whether you are planting in the backyard or in a container make sure you plant your ginger root with the green eye buds pointing up. Plant them about 4 inches deep.
If you are using a container, Growing Herbs for Beginners recommends using a 12 inch pot for 2 roots.
Caring For Ginger
One easy and quick way to make sure you are keeping the roots warm and the soil moist is to add some mulch.
Make sure you take the time to weed, because ginger roots grow so close to the soil, weeds can wreak havoc.
Water the ginger roots often without soaking the soil. You should be moistening, not over saturating. One way to make sure you are providing enough water is to install a direct to root watering system. Rootwell Products Inc. offers Rootsticks that are scientifically proven to enhance the growth of plants.
Harvesting Ginger
Believe it or not, but you will harvest your ginger about 8-10 months after you plant it. You will know that it is ready, according to Tropical Permaculture, when the leaves have died down.
Your Turn
Have you ever grown ginger? If not, would you like to give it a try?
