Growing Ginger

Zingiber Officinale : Zingiberaceae / the ginger family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec

Not recommended for growing in USA - Zone 5a regions

  • Plant pieces of fresh root showing signs of shoots. Best planted at soil temperatures between 68°F and 86°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 6 inches apart
  • Harvest in approximately 25 weeks. Reduce water as plant dies back to encourage rhizome growth.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Grow in separate bed
  • Ginger plant
  • Ginger ready to harvest
  • Ginger root
  • New shoots of ginger

Ginger is a warm climate plant. It can be grown indoors in pots in cool/temperate areas. To grow well it needs lots of water and nutrients. Prepare the soil by adding compost which will retain some moisture but not get saturated. Add a small amount of sand to ensure drainage. Water regularly in summer to keep moist. In a pot, in addition to watering to keep moist, water ginger about once a fortnight with a seaweed or other liquid fertilizer. This perennial will die down in autumn. Remove the dead leaves. In spring lift the root clumps and break them up into smaller pieces to replant.

Harvesting Ginger: You can harvest ginger root after the plant dies down in winter, digging around the plant to cut off a piece of the older root. The young root with shoots is the actively growing plant and should be left to resprout.

You can also carefully dig down under the plant through the growing season to cut off bits of the older root for use, just be careful not to disturb the rest of the plant too much.

Let plants become well established before harvesting - it is often best to wait until the second growing season.

Make sure that you have edible ginger. Ginger plants sold in nurseries are usually decorative varieties and not suitable for eating.

Ginger can be grown in pots. The best growing temperature is around 25 - 30 C (75 - 85 F)

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Ginger

Ginger root freezes well either whole or grated, and can be used direct from the freezer in most recipes requiring fresh ginger.

Your comments and tips

02 Jan 14, Jean Tencza (USA - Zone 9a climate)
The ginger that I see in stores in all from China. Are these tubers OK to use or are they treated with any substance so they can't be regrown?
01 Apr 14, Chris (USA - Zone 6b climate)
You can plant grocery store ginger. Look for as many "fingers" or bumps as possible as that is growth points on the root. Ginger enjoys well drained nutrient rich soil that dries between waterings. Grown in a pot by a window it will do very well.
03 Mar 14, (USA - Zone 7b climate)
can i leave my ginger root in the ground year round in chesapeake va
28 May 14, l c durovich (USA - Zone 4a climate)
Can ginger be grown in Vermont?
15 Nov 15, Mark Kish (USA - Zone 5a climate)
Can ginger grow in sc near the coast
08 Jan 16, Karen shaver (USA - Zone 9a climate)
May I plant ginger and horseradish in large container ( cow trough 8 ft in diameter) along with flower bulbs? I know I must keep horseradish confinded to control it. Want to plant asparagus, ginger, BlackBerry,, blueberries, strawberries , and horseradish along with my 12 container garden. Have most plants started in house. Should be able put them out mid March. Thank you for any suggestions you have for us.
27 Aug 16, Kev (USA - Zone 5a climate)
Can Ginger be grown in California?
03 Sep 16, Richard Devries (USA - Zone 6b climate)
Can I grow ginger indoors ? How big does pot have to be ?
23 Sep 16, Le nguyen (USA - Zone 5a climate)
Where I can buy the ginger plant so I can grow it under ground? I live in CA
01 Feb 17, Eric Ackley (USA - Zone 9a climate)
In the past, I have bought ginger at the grocery store. Plant several, and dig the root up when you want to use it, cut off a portion, and replant the rest. This year, i will plant more, as we only planted 1 ginger, and it got used up pretty quickly.
Showing 1 - 10 of 46 comments

May I plant ginger and horseradish in large container ( cow trough 8 ft in diameter) along with flower bulbs? I know I must keep horseradish confinded to control it. Want to plant asparagus, ginger, BlackBerry,, blueberries, strawberries , and horseradish along with my 12 container garden. Have most plants started in house. Should be able put them out mid March. Thank you for any suggestions you have for us.

- Karen shaver

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. Gardenate is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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