- How often should turmeric be watered?
- When and how is the turmeric plant repotted?
- Does the saffron root have to be cut back?
- What diseases and pests are affecting the plant?
- How and when should turmeric be fertilized?
- How are the plants successfully overwintered?
The so-called saffron root is known as a cooking ingredient, especially as a component of curry powder, since the powder obtained from the rhizomes has a strong yellow coloring effect. Due to the eye-catching flowers, the plant, which grows to a height of around 80 to 100 cm, is also valued as a decorative indoor and garden plant.
Turmeric likes it moist and light
How often should turmeric be watered?
Since the turmeric plant comes from tropical latitudes with regular rainfall, it likes it evenly moist. The soil around the rhizomes should never dry out completely, but the plant does not like waterlogging either. Therefore, when cultivating in a pot, care should be taken to ensure suitable drainage below the plant substrate. When growing outdoors, it should be watered sparingly, especially during the summer flowering period.
When and how is the turmeric plant repotted?
When repotting, it depends on how the plants are cultivated:
- in a pot on the windowsill
- as a potted plant outdoors
- planted out with the tubers in the open ground bed
Since it is not a frost-resistant plant species, tubers must be dug out of the field bed in early autumn and overwintered in the dark indoors. Plants brought into the house with the pot are usually repotted into a slightly larger pot or divided before new growth occurs in spring.
Does the saffron root have to be cut back?
Since the above-ground parts of the plant die off after the flowering period and only the rhizome survives as an outlasting organ, the withered leaves and flowers are simply cut off. Removing wilted buds during flowering can encourage more buds to form in the same season.
What diseases and pests are affecting the plant?
If the turmeric in the house is too warm and dry, an infestation with spider mites can occasionally occur. These can be recognized by the white webs and fought with a sharp jet of water or appropriate means from specialist shops. Other deficiency symptoms are almost exclusively due to care errors.
How and when should turmeric be fertilized?
Commercial liquid fertilizers or fertilizer sticks (€4.48) can be used sparingly during the growth phase from spring to summer. Fertilization should be stopped by September at the latest. For the question of fertilization, it is also relevant whether the rhizomes are intended for consumption or not.
How are the plants successfully overwintered?
The plants or their tubers should definitely be brought indoors when the outdoor temperature falls below around 10 degrees Celsius. You can either dig up the rhizomes and clean them with a cloth, wrap them in sand or overwinter them in a pot with a relatively dry substrate. This should be done in a dark room and at around 15 degrees Celsius.
tips
When watering your turmeric plants, be careful not to water the flowers too often. If water remains permanently in the notches of the spiked inflorescences, it can lead to blossom rot in the worst case.