potatoes, ginger, and tumeric, oh my!

[Fluffy&Cutie]

well, at least i make myself laugh.
so i'm trying to grow these 3 root plants in pots. i watched the videos and did the planting. but nothing-just nothing. AND my ginger turned to mush.
i'm in los angeles, so it's still warm in the day, cool in the night. do you have any advice on how to better grow these? for sure, less watering for the ginger! i was just wondering if anyone had grown these with success. were there any tricks you did?
thanks.

 

[wildgreenegg]

Hi. Master gardener here.
Some questions:
1. How is the drainage in the pot? Might you be overwatering?
2. How deeply did you plant the root? And how long ago?
3. Where are the pots located? How much sun do the pots get?
4. I have another method of starting ginger, turmeric, and the like. Would you be interested in my posting it?

 

[Fluffy&Cutie]

Hi. Master gardener here.
Some questions:
1. How is the drainage in the pot? Might you be overwatering?
2. How deeply did you plant the root? And how long ago?
3. Where are the pots located? How much sun do the pots get?
4. I have another method of starting ginger, turmeric, and the like. Would you be interested in my posting it?

yay master gardener!!!
yes! please post!
i replanted the garlic-less deep and they started to grow. so i did the same to the others. i m guessing i was over watering, hence the mush. so i stopped that. they get the most sun in their spot. it's facing east/south. i watched the videos again to make sure i was doing ok. they mentioned that it takes awhile, so i m now trying patence. thanks again. looking forward to hearing from you!

 

[wildgreenegg]

Hi. I usually start my roots (rhizomes)indoors on a thick mat of moist paper towels by the sink. I also have a window--no direct sunlight and overhead lights above my sink. I turn the rhizomes over once a day and make sure the paper towels are moist. Barring that, I use a small pot or container of vermiculite, moistened. Lay the rhizome lightly under the surface in indirect light. Only water to keep evenly moist--not sopping wet. Using a plant pot lined with window screen, panty hose, etc. helps excess moisture drain out...yes, no misting with a sprayer for me--I hose them down making a spray using my thumb to deflect water. Both methods take around 3-4 weeks. At any rate, you will begin to see nodes start to green up, then begin to send up a shoot. At that point I pot up the rhizome in a pot that has potting soil mixed with perlite. Perlite offers exceptional drainage. I usually put in a fourth to a third...
As for garlic, again plant as you would a regular bulb-depth. In a pot, drainage, drainage, drainage. Also, graduating the pot size may help. Small bulb, small pot till the bulb gets bigger, bigger pot, etc.
Potatoes shouldn't give you grief about sprouting and there are many examples out there on growing them in pots or pot-like structures. --The issue may be drainage. In the past, I've seen potting soil sold with perlite in it but in recent years, they seem to leave it out. I just buy a separate bag and add my own.-- If for some reason, your potatoes will not sprout, it could be due to it/them being treated with a chemical that prevents sprouting. Did you buy the potatoe(s) from a grocery store? You may want to try washing them, drying and leaving them in the bag they came in in a darkish place. Or, try getting the coveted potato from an organic store. Or...Place cut potato eyes in a worm bin. Worms dislike potatoes and something in the worm castings help plants sprout.
I should have bulleted this but I hope this helps.--There is a lot of misinformation out there about grocery gardens. Here's a pic of my grocery cabbage.

 

[wildgreenegg]

Hmm.

 

[wildgreenegg]

Omg. I forgot dormancy. I have one variety of ginger that goes dormant every year. The other doesn't. Same for my turmeric. Dormancy usually occurs around November. They come back around late March, maybe April, and this year it was May. It is possible to force them but may not work out for the plant.--Also, I live on Oahu. Below sea level. While we did use the California Master Gardener's book as a guideline; I cannot fully appreciate your weather nor your growing conditions.