Ginger is a healthy plant. First of all, its root is valued, which is used in medicine and cooking. But the plant itself will delight you with beautiful flowering if you create suitable conditions for it, since it will not be possible to grow ginger at home without this. Before growing ginger at home, it is necessary to study the conditions of its natural growth.
Pot and soil
For a plant such as ginger, growing it at home involves both planting it in a pot and planting it in open ground.When growing in pots, choose a wide container, since the spicy tuber requires a large space to grow. But for cultivating a plant only for decorative purposes, a deep and narrow container is suitable.
Ginger needs good drainage. Expanded clay or river gravel up to 5 cm high is poured onto the bottom of the pot. The layer of earth that covers the top does not need to be pressed down.
To plant a healing tuber in a pot, you can purchase ready-made soil. This plant does best in vegetable or citrus fruit soil. But you can prepare the soil yourself by mixing soil, sand and humus in equal parts. The same composition is suitable for planting ginger in the garden. Also, the soil must be soft, loose and breathable so that the sprouts can easily make their way to the top.
How to grow ginger from a root, a root tuber?
Ginger is a heat-loving plant, so it can only be planted in open ground in the southern part of Russia. In other regions of our country, it is best to grow ginger from the root at home in a pot.
This plant has tuberous roots and therefore reproduces vegetatively. The ginger rhizome is tuberous and develops horizontally. 1 tuber is enough for planting.
Preparation
Preparing a plant for planting in a pot begins with choosing a tuber. Planting material should not be dry or damaged. A good specimen is a thick, milky yellow root with branches. The more “eyes” (shoot buds) on a tuber, the higher the chance of germination. Moreover, such buds should be located on all parts of the root.
Before planting, shoot buds must be activated. To do this, the tubers are immersed in warm water for 3-4 hours.You can add a little potassium permanganate to the water to disinfect the tubers. This procedure is performed immediately after purchasing planting material. You can also put the tubers in a cool, dark place for 2-3 weeks.
Large roots are cut into several pieces along the bridges. The cut is sprinkled with ash. The main rule when dividing tubers is that each part must have at least 1 “eye”. It is necessary to divide large tubers, as the plantings may be too dense.
How to plant ginger root?
Planting of tubers begins in February-March. However, before planting ginger at home, you need to find a suitable place for it. In its homeland in the tropics, this medicinal plant prefers shady places, but in a temperate climate without sun, ginger will freeze.
Although the pot for planting a tropical plant is large, the tubers are not buried deeply. They are laid out on the surface of the soil so that the buds look up. Then sprinkle wet substrate on top. The thickness of the top layer should not be more than 3 cm.
The seedlings are placed in a warm sunny place. Indoors, it is best to place the pot on a windowsill on the south side, and in summer move it to a cooler place. However, you should not expect quick shoots. The first shoots appear 2 weeks after planting.
Caring for ginger at home
The homeland of the healing root is the south-eastern countries of Asia with a tropical climate. There, this perennial plant can reach a height of 1 m. To grow the same plant in Russian conditions, you will have to try, since you need to carefully care for ginger.
Temperature
Ginger loves warm climates, so the acceptable temperature for it is +18...+24 °C.If the root crop is planted outdoors, then the planting site should be protected from wind and strong shade, as well as excessive direct sunlight.
In order for caring for ginger at home to lead to flowering more quickly, the pot with the plant should be in a warm and bright place. But you need to make sure that the soil does not dry out and the leaves do not burn in the sun.
Lighting
The best place to grow ginger is an area next to garden trees. So the beds with diluted root crops will be located in a slight shade, however, they will have enough sunlight.
Indoors, a pot with root vegetables is placed near the window. In summer, during the period of bright daytime sun, it is better to remove the container deep into the room or move it to a window facing the north-west side.
Watering
The healing plant loves moisture, however, before the first buds appear, it requires moderate watering. Water should not stagnate in the pot, but the soil should not be allowed to dry out. If the air temperature is high, then watering is increased.
As the temperature drops, the plant requires less moisture. To keep the soil moist, in hot weather you can take the pot outside to a shaded place.
The growing perennial enjoys daily misting. To prevent burns on the leaves, spraying from a spray bottle is best done in the morning and evening. The peculiarities of growing ginger require constant soil care. After each watering, the soil should be loosened to allow air to reach the roots.
Fertilizer
Growing ginger at home, like any greenery that is accustomed to growing in other climatic conditions, is not an easy task. Therefore, it is impossible to do without fertilizing to ensure normal growth of the spicy tuber.Feeding, loosening and moisture are what ginger loves.
At the beginning of growth, you can replenish the soil with potassium fertilizers. During active growth, complex mineral fertilizers are used for root crops. Six months after planting, organic and potash fertilizers are alternated. Fertilizers are applied to the soil once a week.
Pests and diseases
Since the “tropical healer” most often grows indoors in unusual climatic conditions, it is not afraid of many natural pests. However, when the pot is taken outside in the summer, the plant may be attacked by spider mites. The pest can be identified by the characteristic cluster of small yellow dots on the leaves. Pest control is simple:
- Once a week, the leaves and stem are treated with a fungicide until the spider mite disappears;
- carry out regular spraying, and then cover the above-ground part of the plant with a plastic bag, creating a greenhouse effect that is detrimental to spider mites;
- carry out preventive measures to help prevent pests from appearing on the leaves.
But most often, diseases of tropical root vegetables are associated with improper care. Due to the lack of air and direct sunlight during the hot period, the leaves turn yellow and wither. Due to lack of moisture, the leaves begin to dry out quickly.
Harvesting
Ginger grows slowly even in its usual tropics. In cool climates, its growth slows down even more. The first fruits should be expected a year after planting, since the roots begin to ripen only in mid-autumn. And to enjoy the beautiful flowering of the “tropical healer”, it is better to wait another year. To do this, you just need to leave the roots in the soil.
The signal for harvesting ginger grown in an apartment is the wilting of the above-ground part. Most often this happens in the middle of winter. As soon as the ground part begins to turn slightly yellow and droop, stop watering. After 3-4 days, you can dig up the roots and send them for drying and storage. You can start collecting root crops in the fall, but in this case you won’t expect a good harvest.
How to properly store tubers? Place the root crop in a cool, dark place. A cellar or refrigerator is best suited for this. If long-term storage is planned, the root crop should be wrapped in paper. However, when stored for more than 6 months, it begins to lose its healing properties, but it can again be used as planting material.
