I have just bought another piece, this has two green shoots starting, now I need some advice on how deep to plant it, how often to water and fertlize it, also how long does it take to grow, and when do you know when its time to dig it up.

MM.

Propagate by root division. Make sure the ginger root you wish to propagate from has not been treated to prevent sprouting. Pieces of root may be placed in a shallow large (about 40 litre capacity) container of potting soil or sand. Ginger prefers a soil with a pH of 5.0-7.0. Make sure the ‘eyes’ are in an upright position when planting. Bury only and 2cm deep. Keep in a warm, sunny position. Water well and keep it moist, but not wet. It will take at least a month to sprout, and the root may be harvested after 5-6 months. After they sprout and form a good root system, they may be transplanted to the garden and spaced 30cm apart. In warmer regions, ginger should be grown in light shade, but in cooler areas it should be grown in full sun. It should be given plenty of water, but good drainage is important.

Roots may be dug with a spading fork just before frost, or when the pot is full, or the leaves begin to die down. If grown in a pot, the plant should be 8-12 months old before harvesting. To harvest from containers, dump out the roots or feel for them with your hands. Cut off leaf stalks and remove the root, keep as much as required and plant the rest.

make sure you buy your ginger from an organic shop, you need corms that are going to grow they should already be showing signs of bud. but i did very well with ginger in brissy i also grew all mine in pots makes for easier harvest, and still doing well with ginger here north of gympie. i found they like a good drink but then they like to be reasonably well drained, here they grow in a very sandy loam but heavily mulched and they only get rain water the natural way.

len

First give the plant a good trim, removing as much as half its height. Water it and leave it for a week or so to recover. Some gardeners like to dig out a whole plant and break or cut it into several sections, each with plenty of roots attached. Then plant in a pot and fill with potting mix. Others prefer to gently pull out a stem from the base of a plant, making sure that some roots remain attached. 10-15cm lengths are about right. Then place it into one of the half filled pots and top it up with potting mix. Give it a good soak and place it in a sheltered spot out of direct sunlight.

As for 'treating' roots like ginger, and bulbs like garlic, to prevent them sprouting, it's usually done by spraying the harvested bits with some chemical or other which inhibits sprouting - as far as I know it's a hormone of some kind. You need to check with the purchase outlet to find out whether their suppliers do this or not - they may not know, and it may be difficult to find out. Your best insurance against this is to buy certified organic produce.

good luck, merry Xmas,

Scott

Merry Christmas to you and your Family too....MM

ginger is one of those plants that will sprout when it is good and ready mine are just coming up now, must have something to do with ground temp' or moisture or atmospheric moisture. was starting to get worried myself that they had rotted in the ground. i don't lift mine, i should maybe to spread them around but been to busy.

len