Edible ginger roots, or Zingiber officinale, grow into attractive plants and continue to produce edible root sections you can harvest for use as a kitchen spice. Grow ginger root directly in the garden bed in areas with a mild winter with little frost or grow in pots that you move indoors before the first winter frost.
Choose a healthy, fresh ginger root. Pick a root piece that isn't wrinkle and is moist inside when cut.
Inspect the root for the growth buds, similar to the eyes on a potato. Cut the ginger root apart, leaving two to four eyes on each root piece you plan to plant.
Fill a container with 1 part compost and 1 part peat moss. If you are planting the ginger outside, prepare a partially shaded garden bed by laying a 3-inch layer of compost over it and working it into the soil with a hoe to an 8-inch depth.
Sow the ginger root 2 to 4 inches beneath the soil surface with the eyes facing up. Cover loosely with soil. Space plants 8 inches apart in beds or plant up to three roots pieces in a 12-inch diameter pot. Shoots will begin to appear in as little as one week to as long as two weeks.
Keep the soil moist at all times. Apply a 3-inch layer of organic mulch around the plant in garden beds and in pots to preserve soil moisture. For container plants, mist the ginger leaves using a spray bottle.
Apply a fresh layer of compost to the pot or ground around the ginger plant each spring. Use a general purpose houseplant fertilizer on container plants if the leaves begin to yellow.