As have mentioned before when she has her shopping hat on everything goes in the basket. It is a ginger root this time. Never bothered with it before so advice needed. The planting instructions say plant out after the frosts. OUT? Even in our milder weather down here I am not convinced. I don't want a pot on the window sill, I have enough problems with Orchids and any other strange plant she gets blocking out the light.
Who has grown this outside? is it a waste of time? Or am I better grating up the root I have and using it in the next Thai curry.
It does get big - too big for a window sill. It will cope outside on a nice southern facing wall but any hint of frost and it will fall over. They are pretty fragile. I gave it a go once but it was in to small a pot and it kept falling over so if you do give it a go - big pot, protected area, plenty of that southern sun!!
I've only grown some in GH..and the air was too dry for them in 'hot' summer temps....red spider mites did love the foliage.. :BangHead:
If/when I have ago again...I probably would try 'outdoors' in large container or ground with black plastic mulch and maybe some sort of 'tent'/cover over them...day time temps probably would be adequate but night time could be tad 'fresh.
Tried it once Ace, in the green house, eye sides up and never saw it again, sadly.
Ninnyscrops
I've tried it too from supermarket ginger roots you're supposed to cook and it does make a plant ... mine lasted one summer in the greenhouse making a kind of grassy foliage that smelt of ginger. I dug some up before the frosts and it was exactly the same size as when I planted it ... possibly slightly smaller! The bits I left in the greenhouse perished over the winter.
I'm looking to get some Myoga ginger for this year - it's a japanese ginger and you use the young shoots and flower buds to cook with ... it's supposed to be hardy down to -15 C ... we'll see how it actually does!
I wouldn't bother trying to grow culinary ginger but I can give you a very tasty recipe that will be good for your diet if you're still doing it - very fresh and tasty and light.
Tomato, Orange and Ginger Soup
1 onion, chopped
2 oz butter or dry sherry to save on fat
1½ lb or 2 tins tomatoes, chopped
1 orange, grated rind and juice
½ pint chicken stock
2" piece of ginger, peeled and grated
Soften the onion in the butter or sherry then stir in the orange rind and season with salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes and ginger and simmer till cooked. Remove from the heat, add the orange juice and stock and liquidise. Adjust seasoning. Reheat gently and serve.
I have grown the eating type from supermarket on sunny windowsill. It suddenly got a nice long root in the plastic bag. It was something of a conversation piece, people thought it was bamboo. It got quite tall. There was a bit of root when I dug it up but not much. I did not know it would be ok outside during the summer.
Might try again and throw it outside when it gets too big and weather is warmer.
Sooner or later some begins to sprout.
Bet it was more expensive than the eating type with all those growing instructions, not sure her with the shopping hat will be pleased if it gets grated but I think it may be the best answer.
The soup sounds good.
It's going in the cooking pot, no good growing something that gives you less than when you planted it.