Ginger is a wonderful plant to grow -and very healthy for us all - great for colds and flu when made into a tea and is good for the digestive system, it also helps with nausea - and of course it is great in curries.
Growing your own ginger could not be easier.
It can also be grown in containers if you do not have a garden.
Ginger likes a well drained fertile soil with lots of compost added and needs to be in a good sunny position.
Take a piece of ginger that is nice and fresh that you have bought from your local grocery store - if the skin is beginning to wrinkle, don't buy it as this is a sign that the ginger is not fresh.
Once you have prepared the soil, simply break off some of the ginger pieces and plant into the soil covering the ginger, then water.
After a while you will see the green ginger shoots emerging and eventually they will grow quite tall and you will be able to see when it is time to harvest by gently feeling around the bottom of the stems to see how big the rhizomes have formed.
If it is time to harvest, you can remove as you need -leaving the remainder in the soil .
I am not sure about other countries, but here in the Cape, ginger is very expensive, so it is a very worthwhile plant to grow - and there is nothing like lovely fresh ginger.
You can also use the stems if you want to add a ginger taste to a recipe.