Home and Garden Friday - Ginger!!!

Yesterday I was up and in the car before it was fully light, to drive a little over one and a half away to attend a 'Ginger Production Field Day' which was being held at the NC A&T Greensboro farm. It was offered in conjunction with the university and the Cooperative Extension. It was free and was for people who interested in growing ginger as a niche crop. 

I have ginger growing in pots in my yard currently. But I love growing my own ginger. Personally, I think I grow it as an excuse to make candied ginger and have ginger syrup to add to tea. 

But I wanted to learn more from 'professionals' and maybe have a table at the Farmer's Market for one weekend selling fresh, baby ginger.

BOY! IT WAS A FANTASTIC DAY!

 First off, their facility for meetings and classrooms at the facility is very, very nice. (As a side note, due to the heat, they moved a lot of our day inside the building rather than suffering heat close to 100.)

After a quick introduction to several of the professors, we were taken across the hall to a classroom which had been set up for us to try our hand at dividing a hand of ginger into pieces for sprouting. We also learned a bit about how they tissue culture ginger (very tedious by the way) and how they go about creating the plants they use for their studies.

It was interesting to learn that what they study in relation to the ginger is also for the growers. Studies are being done on in-ground/container growing. What size containers are the best for the highest yield. Pests and how to manage them, along with any diseases which might affect the crop. Things you might not expect anyone to be interested in really does make a difference to someone who is growing ginger for profit.

Working at a grocery store, I knew ginger was imported, mainly in the case of the chain I work for, from South America. Yes, it says organic, but who knows. And of USA grown ginger, which amounts to only 20% of the ginger used in the US, it comes from Hawaii. 

One of the big take-aways from this part of the day was the use of coco coir for sprouting ginger. I know from my own experience and the experience of other people who I know who have tried to grow ginger, is the difficulty of getting the ginger to sprout using potting soil and/or compost. So I have a lot of hope for using coco coir (which I have used for other things) and baby ginger, rather than 'store bought mature ginger'.

Anyway, we learned the 'proper' way to divide up a large 'hand' of ginger into sprouting size pieces. Hmmm...you mean cutting it up with that old steak knife on the kitchen counter isn't the best way? Using alcohol to clean the knife before and during cutting? Letting the ginger sit for 24-48 hours to callus over? Allowing the ginger to not only sprout, but to get a few inches tall before transplanting. Who knew!

It was very interesting to me to learn about the tissue culturing. I was aware of it, mainly with orchids and other house plants. But to learn not only does it guarantee a start for the ginger which is disease free and gives a head start on the entire growing process. (Duh - that's why they do it for the mass marketing for houseplants!)

So after cutting up our pieces (and plotting with a fellow attendee on how we could make off with a bucket of the ginger), we went outside to see how to process the ginger once it is harvested.

Another aside - the ginger grown in North Carolina is harvested as 'baby' ginger. Our growing season is not long enough for it to mature and grow the brown 'skin' on it you see in the grocery store. Personally, I love baby ginger. It is more tender and juicy to me. The ginger hasn't had time to grow fibers. I also find the scent more intense with the baby ginger. 

We learned about washing the dirt off and trimming leaves and roots - which I have done in the past. Several of us discussed drying the leaves for tea, all the while sniffing the leaves. There is something about the scent of ginger. 

Of course, I have only had a relatively tiny harvest in the past, but am plotting a larger harvest in the coming year. I would love to have to spend the day washing and trimming ginger rather than just an hour or so. 

Anyway...

We then loaded up on open tractor pulled trolleys for a tour of the greenhouse, high tunnels and woodland area where they grow ginger.

 

These plants are only 3 months old! One of the things we learned was for their studies, rather than planting them 6 inches apart, they are spaced 12 inches apart so it is easier to take measurements and count the stalks of each plant. 

The woodland area where they are growing ginger (also 3 months old) really got my mental wheels turning. I don't have room for a high tunnel, however, my back yard is slightly sloped. So I can set up a system where I can drape shade cloth over the in-ground or containers for my ginger. Hmmm...so much to think about and to set up for next year. 

I'm missing a few of the other instructors who talked to us about various aspects of ginger production in this picture, but this was a few of them. Another interesting aspect was how each person had a particular area they were covering. One was tissue culturing, another was doing the outside growing, and even one who went over how to calculate your costs for growing ginger.

Back to the building (and out of the heat) we were treated to a nice lunch of sandwich or salad while listening to closing comments. I would love to go back next year and see their new Urban and Community Food Complex where they can do all kinds of testing and preparations for food products, including a Creamery! Can I volunteer to be a frozen dessert/ice cream tester?

Heading home I made a side trip to my store where I get my coco coir. At the end of the program, they brought out the ginger we had cut up and were allowed to take some home. I have enough for a tray to sprout. I can't wait to see how using young ginger and coco coir changes the sprouting process. 

And while I know I will have to reinforce my little plastic greenhouse (or find a place to eventually bring the containers inside during the latter part of the year), I hope to get enough ginger to use for a larger crop in 2027.

So my coco coir is soaking and I will lay out my pieces later today. Hopefully, in the next few weeks I can report back on sprouting ginger!