GingerZingiber officinale

Ginger is a tender, tropical plant which can be grown outdoors during the hottest months but requires a heated greenhouse, conservatory or indoor position for the rest of the year.

Ginger requires a warm position, shaded from the hot sun with fertile soil and high humidity. It needs plenty of moisture during the growing phase but the soil should be freely-draining and never become soggy. Ginger grows by spreading rhizomes and can reach heights of 1m so use wide pots and allow plenty of space. Over time, plants will become congested and should be regularly re-potted.

Plant the tubers into a wide pot or seed tray – preferably in early spring.  Fill them with compost and place the ginger root on the surface with eyes facing upwards. Just cover with compost so the eyes are exposed. Keep in a warm, shady place – ginger requires soil temperatures of at least 20C to grow. Water lightly until the shoots appear which should take around two weeks. At this stage, rhizomes sprouted in seed trays can be potted on.

Keep in a warm, shaded spot and water regularly, the compost should remain moist but good drainage is essential. Top up with compost as the stem grows to encourage larger, longer rhizomes and feed regularly with high potash fertiliser.

Ginger can be placed outside for the summer months. Harvest from late summer onwards when the plant ceases to produce leaves. Remove the plant from its pot and either break off a section of rhizome or break apart all the rhizomes and harvest what you need for the kitchen then repot the remainder.

Move back indoors to overwinter in a warm place. Plants will go dormant and lose all their leaves and stems. Ease back on watering so the compost remains barely moist. Growth will resume in spring.

Seeds and garden supplies will normally be delivered within the time period stated against each product as detailed above. Plants, bulbs, corms, tubers, shrubs, trees, potatoes, etc. are delivered at the appropriate time for planting or potting on. Delivery times will be stated on the product page above, or in your order acknowledgement page and email.

Orders for packets of seed incur a delivery charge of £2.99.

Orders which include any other products will incur a delivery charge of £6.99.

Where an order includes both packets of seeds and other products, a maximum delivery charge of £7.99 will apply - regardless of the number of items ordered.

Large items may incur a higher delivery charge - this will be displayed in your shopping basket.

Please see our Delivery page for further details, and more information on different charges that may apply to certain destinations.

For more information on how we send your plants please visit our Helpful Guide on plant sizes.