How To Grow Ginger No Matter Where You Live

This is one of the first  spices to have arrived in Europe from Asia with the spice trade and is now popular around the world. The roots are used fresh and dried in a wide range of recipes. They also have a long history of medicinal use.

Today, India is the country with the highest ginger production, followed by Nigeria, China, Indonesia and Nepal. However, this is a plant that can be grown in a wide range of different areas, even in containers, which can make it ideal for small-scale home growing. Interestingly, it is only found in cultivation and never growing wild.

Why Grow Ginger?

Growing your own ginger is a great way to reduce the food miles (and carbon footprint) of the food you eat. It is also an ideal crop to grow if you want to expand the range of flavours in your home-grown diet.

Ginger is not only an excellent spice for a range of curries and other recipes. It can also be used fresh and dried in a huge range of different ways. (More information on the various uses of ginger can be found towards the end of this article.)

Ginger is also a great plant to grow if you are interested in natural medicine and  plants that promote good health. It is widely used in Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine and is rich in volatile oils, gingerols and (when dried) shogaols.

One well known use for ginger is in the control of nausea. But ginger can also be beneficial in pain relief, stimulating the circulation, treating coughs and colds, and in a number of other arenas. It is used both internally and topically.

If you are growing ginger in a temperate climate, it can be grown in a container and so can take up little space. So it is easy to find space for some on a sunny windowsill or another small, warm and light location.

If you are growing ginger in the ground, either in an undercover growing area or outside in a tropical or subtropical garden, ginger can also work well in tropical or sub-tropical polycultures. Ideas on plants to grow alongside ginger in such a garden can be found in the ‘planting your ginger’ section below.

Sourcing Ginger For Planting