How To Grow Turmeric In A Pot

Easy gardening tips on how to grow turmeric in a pot at home garden and get more fresh turmeric for free. Grow turmeric in the container if you have limited space for the garden  

I’ve been trying to grow turmeric for the past five years or so with no luck. I think it was because I did the same thing before I put them in the ground. I mostly plant the turmeric rhizomes straight into the ground without any other step before.

These rhizomes rotted after about two weeks on the ground. For this season, I try it again with a different method. Surprisingly it grows well above my expectations.

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How To Grow Turmeric In A Container

• If you get the turmeric rhizomes/roots/tubes from a grocery store, pick the rhizomes that look healthy, no sign of rot, no shriveled or dried out.
• Put the turmeric rhizomes on the paper plate, keep it in the dry and warm area like on top of the kitchen countertop for 2 – 3 weeks until the new shoots formed on each rhizome’s eyes.
• Once it has new shoots, prepare the six inches pots with good potting soil on it.
• Put the turmeric one inch below the soil surface.
• Water it until it is just moist. Keep the soil moist but don’t over water it. Keep it in a warm place like windowsill.
• In about two weeks, there will be new leaves grow from the shoots.
• I start the turmeric plant indoor, so it needs to harden it off to make the plant ready to grow outside.

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How To Harden Off Turmeric Plant

Hardening off process is not complicated, just put the plant outside gradually for one hour every day and add more hours each day for minimum a week.

Keep the plant in the shade, it could be on the covered porch, under the patio furniture, or around the tree.

The idea is to keep the plant away from the direct sun before it ready for the real outside weather to prevent sun scorch on the leaves.

• After one week, prepare the bigger size container with good potting soil, I use the 12-inch pot. Add compost or manure to the soil mix.
• Transfer the baby turmeric plants into the bigger containers you prepared.
• Keep the soil moist, but don’t over water it.
• Keep the plant in the partial sun that it gets sunshine for couple hours in a day. You can mist the leaves often in the hot days to create the humidity environment.

Here is more detail about the importance of the hardening off process.

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The Ideal Temperature To Grow Turmeric

Turmeric is a tropical plant, so the ideal temperature is between 68 – 95 F (20-35 C) just like room temperature. When fall season is coming and the temperature drop below 50 F (10 C) the plant will look sad, as it will suffer the colder temperature.

Because you grow turmeric in a pot, you can bring it back inside when the colder temperature is coming. If you would like to keep the turmeric growing indoor, you might need to make the plant adapt to the indoor temperature that sometimes in low humidity.

Do the same way like hardening off process, but this time bring it indoor gradually for one hour and add more hours each day for a week. Do this about one week before the temperature drop.

Turmeric is a great houseplant, practically low maintenance and you will get free turmeric roots for cooking. Try to keep misting the leaves and keep the soil moist if your indoor temperature tends to low in humidity level.

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How To Harvest Turmeric

Turmeric takes about eight months to mature, once the leave become yellow, dig up the whole plant and cut the turmeric rhizome you need and replant the remaining plant back to keep the plant growing.

Do you like to garden or try to build a home garden? Then you might want to try these easy to follow propagating plant from kitchen scraps tutorials.

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• How To Root Tomato Plants From Cuttings

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