Allotments 4 All

Has any one grown lemon grass? Will it grow outside ? How tall will it grow? Will it make a hedge sort of screen type thingie if it will grow outside?   And will the supermarket lemon grass grow???

I grow mine from seed - very easy - and have three plants in the greenhouse at present. More of a houseplant-size than a hedge though! Are you thinking of bamboo?

And definitely indoors in the UK. I'll bring mine into the house in late autumn.

You can grow it from supermarket bits if there's some root on it apparently, but I've never done it this way...

I have grown it from a piece from the supermaket.  Grew very well and fast in a large pot in the greenhouse.  I wouldn't think it hardy, and it doesn't get that big, mine was probably no taller than 12 or so inches.

Quote from: EJ - Emma Jane on August 21, 2005, 21:19:45
I have grown it from a piece from the supermaket. Grew very well and fast in a large pot in the greenhouse......

Out of interest EJ does it clump up to give more than one spike and therefore possibility of regular harvest?

I never bother to buy it but would love to have it on tap for when required.

Iain

It did clump up - filled the pot.  Produced lots of smaller 'blades' which were very handy as they were soft so easy to chop and use.

I've got 6 plants from seed in a greenhouse bed in front of my aubergines and peppers.  They are about thigh-high (2'+) and forming great big fountains of grass.  At the base they are thickening up as much as pencil-size, maybe 20 stems per plant, so yes, it has formed a hedge, but only in the greenhouse :D.
I also grew one in a pot outside and it is about ½ the size :'(, so I gave it away yesterday for someone's conservatory.
Warning: I've never yet met one that was hardy outdoors, and I am in the warm south of Champshire.

Does it grow outside then in summer?

I think in mid summer you could put the pot on the patio but it is not hardy and is more of a house plant.
EJ - how did you grow yours from a supermarket piece???
Did you root it in compost or rooting compound or water?

I found a piece with a slither of basal plate still attached to the bottom, and stuck it in a pot of bog standard potting compost, watered it well, and left it to it in the greenhouse.  In no time at all a green shoot sprouted from the middle of the grass, and then babies started growing around it.  Very easy really - just try to choose a nice turgid fresh piece.

Ooh - that is interesting.

I've never cooked with it, but it's supposed to be great medicinally for something I can't remember.

I pulled one stem last night from in the greenhouse, chopped the leaves into 6" lengths, and took a tenderising hammer to the woody bit.  Wonderful smell. 8)
Then I chucked it in with the rice for our evening meal along with a crushed garlic clove.
Mrs Project was delighted with the outcome, and the strips of grass were easy to remove when I drained the rice. :-*

I tried it from seed and failed - and read afterwards it's tricky from seed. I then bought 2 shoots from the local supermarket for about 70p, stuck them in some water and they rooted within a week or two. I imagine they're hardy during summer, but wouldn't last the winter in the UK..

*fingers crossed for some healthy little lemon grass plants*
Melanie

Quote from: fluffygrue on August 29, 2005, 18:45:08
I tried it from seed and failed - and read afterwards it's tricky from seed. I then bought 2 shoots from the local supermarket for about 70p, stuck them in some water and they rooted within a week or two. I imagine they're hardy during summer, but wouldn't last the winter in the UK..

*fingers crossed for some healthy little lemon grass plants*
Melanie

Mine grew dead easy - if I'd known it was meant to be tricky I'd have probably treated it with more respect! 
Seeds were scattered on a peat-free-compost mixed with perlite and vermiculite, dusted over with more peat-free, and chucked in the greenhouse next to the tomato seed trays and watered along with them (rain barrel water - does that make a difference?). 
Shame the same treatment didn't work with my squashes!
Luck ??? Judgement ??? Who knows ??? 8)
Now I'm faced with a mass of spikey fronds and the prospect of harvesting them without a clue as to what I'm going to do with it all.  I think an exotic give-away is looming :)

Quote from: weedin project on August 31, 2005, 22:54:48

Quote from: fluffygrue on August 29, 2005, 18:45:08
I tried it from seed and failed - and read afterwards it's tricky from seed. I then bought 2 shoots from the local supermarket for about 70p, stuck them in some water and they rooted within a week or two. I imagine they're hardy during summer, but wouldn't last the winter in the UK..
Melanie

Mine grew dead easy - if I'd known it was meant to be tricky I'd have probably treated it with more respect! 

Yay - my little lemon grass plants have sprouted new growth! I suspect the seeds weren't impressed with my kitchen-windowsill approach with its unregulated temperatures.. but still, my plants only cost about 35p each, so that's pretty good. Especially as they're perennial. :D

Melanie

I read somewhere that citronella is derived from lemon grass. So if you put a plant outside in the summer, would it keep the bugs away?  ???

Perhaps there is no obvious smell other than when you use the plant for cooking?

Quote from: gardenqueen on September 01, 2005, 11:51:14
I read somewhere that citronella is derived from lemon grass. So if you put a plant outside in the summer, would it keep the bugs away?  ???

Perhaps there is no obvious smell other than when you use the plant for cooking?

I've just done some research, and it looks like citronella is from the same genus as lemon grass, but a different species. A website I found says that just growing the plant doesn't give off enough scent to put insects off, sadly. :/

Incidentally, the one you want for citronella seems to be Cymbopogon winterianus. Might be worth a try growing it anyway..

Melanie (when I grow up I want to be a plant nerd :D)