Unusual Vegetable Plants

Ginger - Zingiber Officinale

Ginger was an important spice traded over 2,000 years ago with records showing that the Romans valued it highly, not so much as a foodstuff, but for its medicinal qualities. Although it was grown so long ago in India, it does not occur naturally in the wild anywhere, so its true origins are unknown. Ginger is still a very important crop for India to this day and records show that in 2003 India grew over a quarter of a million tons.

Throughout more recent history Ginger continued to be traded and grown widely, with Arab spice dealers carrying the rhizomes to East Africa and making plantations in coastal settlements during the 13th and 14th centuries. Spices were often more valuable than gold and Ginger was in such demand in England at that time that one pound in weight of ginger was equivalent to the cost of a sheep. Ginger was used in all kinds of preparations then in the UK, but more recently its main use has been in baked goods such as gingerbread. Of course another popular use for Ginger in England, is in making a non-alcoholic soft drink called Ginger beer.

Ginger plants grow to only about 1 m tall with flowers about 1/3 of that height. Although Ginger plants produce a red fruit after flowering, it is of course, the knobbly tuberous Rhizome that is harvested. Being a true plant of the Tropics Ginger needs a very high steady temperature for up to nine months to produce a harvestable crop, but having said that it is possible to grow a small quantity in a greenhouse in the UK.

You are unlikely to see your local garden centre offering young plants for sale along with other vegetables and herbs, but you will see fresh Ginger in many greengrocers. Choose the freshest pieces you can find and they may even have viable buds showing already. Simply cut off some of the “Fingers” and push them into a pot off good compost on their ends with the buds uppermost. Ginger does not suffer from many natural problems if grown in the UK, but Red Spider Mite is one that can of course easily be prevented by regular misting. As the days shorten and light levels fall in the Autumn reduce watering and let the pots dry out before harvesting the rhizomes.