Ginger

August 20, 2016

I was wondering if you could give me any tips on how to get my ginger plants to bloom.  I have quite a few, and they do great outside in the summer months.  I move them in every fall and treat them as houseplants over winter - they do just fine.  They have such gorgeous blooms when I purchase them, but after that, none, not ever, and I've had some of them for 4 or 5 years! 

Do you know what type of ginger you are growing? Most members of the Hedychium genus are winter hardy throughout central and southern Arkansas, with a bit of added protection needed in the northern tier.  Just mulch a bit more after a killing frost.  The hardiest and most common one in this genus is the white butterfly ginger, but there are some lovely orange and yellow blooming varieties as well.  If you are growing these they do best with full sun to partial shade. If they are in deep shade, they will not bloom.  They are just now beginning to bloom and should do so for at least 6 weeks.  Other species of ginger include the peacock (Kaempheria) which may overwinter in south Arkansas in the shade and the torch gingers (Etlingera) and Alpinia (Shell Ginger), the latter two are not winter hardy in Arkansas and would need to be moved indoors for the winter. 

All links to external sites open in a new window. You may return to the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture web site by closing this window when you are finished. We do not guarantee the accuracy of the information, or the accessibility for people with disabilities listed at any external site.

Links to commercial sites are provided for information and convenience only. Inclusion of sites does not imply University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture's approval of their product or service to the exclusion of others that may be similar, nor does it guarantee or warrant the standard of the products or service offered.

The mention of any commercial product in this web site does not imply its endorsement by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture over other products not named, nor does the omission imply that they are not satisfactory.