If you are looking for the perfect herb to grow indoors, ginger won’t let you down. It is a very hardy, low maintenance plant that thrives in partial or even full shade. It requires very little effort. And the best thing about growing this herb is that you can harvest a little of its delicious root at a time while the rest of the plant continues to grow. You don’t have to “harvest” the entire plant in order to enjoy this delicious root herb.
A Hardy Plant
Although the ginger plant is very easy to grow, it is a plant that does not tolerate frost well. Because of this, it actually makes sense to grow the plant indoors instead of outside. You can grow it in a simple pot that you can bring indoors during the cold months and take outside when it’s warm. The plant takes about 10 months after planting to mature.
The ginger plant does not need much sunshine to do well. In fact, it will do just fine if you just place it near a window that lets in at least a little sunshine.
After the plant grows to maturity, you can harvest little pieces of the ginger root without harming the plant. Ginger is a very powerful and concentrated herb. Just a little is all you need for most uses such as making tea, herbal remedies, and for cooking.
Planting
You can grow your ginger from either a seed or from a sprout. Both can be obtained from a local garden center. Seeds can also be obtained online. Since ginger is not a common plant that gardeners grow, it’s possible that you might have difficulty sourcing it locally. If so, just order seeds online.
While it is technically possible to grow a ginger plant from root purchased from your local grocery store, people who try this often have poor results. This is because many grocery store suppliers often apply a special growth inhibitor to keep it from sprouting. There is also the possibility that root sourced from your local grocery store could still have some residual pesticides on it, which makes it less than ideal for planting. For best results, grow your own from seeds or from sprouts properly sourced.
Be sure to plant your ginger in a nice, wide pot containing fresh potting soil. Ginger roots tend to spread out, so you’ll want a pot that gives your plant’s roots plenty of room to spread out. After planting, be sure to place the pot in an area that receives some sunlight – but not too much. Also, when watering, be sure to water just enough to keep the soil moist. You don’t want to soak the plant. If you are planting from seeds, you should see the first sprout in just a few short weeks.
Harvesting
Wait at least three months before attempting to harvest your first root. Gently scrape aside some of the soil to reveal a root. Cut a small piece of it and then cover the root back up. As long as you keep your plant healthy, you can continue to harvest ginger root this way for a long time.
