DIY Network

Tony Lord: The Avant Gardener Eclectic gardener Tony Lord has a way with the weird. From "Dirt On Gardening" episode DDOG-107

(Continued from page 1)

Using store-bought ginger root, suspend the root over a jar of water using toothpicks.

An Easy Grow-Your-Own Exotic: Ginger Root

If you'd like to try your hand at growing something slightly out of the ordinary, consider ginger.

What we call "fresh ginger" root is actually the rhizome of the ginger plant, Zingiber officinale. It typically thrives outdoors in moderate climates, but it's quite happy in a pot on the windowsill as well.

advertisement

Fill the jar, submerging about one-third of the ginger root.

Ginger Selection

From the grocery store or Asian market, choose a smooth, shiny root that has some buds beginning. These will look similar to the eyes of a potato.

Planting Ginger Root

Here's a fun way to start a ginger plant-- one that that you may remember from your junior high science-fair days:

• Suspend a two-inch piece of the rhizome over a glass or jar of water:
  
• Poke a toothpick on either side of the root.
  
• Fill a glass, submerging about one-third of the ginger root.
  
• When roots grow to about an inch long, plant the rhizome just below the surface of a rich, moist potting mixture in a pot that has good drainage. The pot should be at least 14" inches in diameter.

Return to DIY's "Gardening and Landscaping" index page.

1 | 2