How to grow and care for red button Ginger

Red button ginger makes a good addition to the garden due to its glossy green, oval-shaped foliage and bright ruby red spiky cones, which produce vibrant orange flowers. Red button Ginger having red cone which attracts hummingbirds. Red button ginger is best when planted in early spring or year-round in tropical climate zone.

This type of plant will grow at a moderate rate, blooming in its second or third growing season and reaching a mature height of 3 to 4 feet. It’s also called Indian Head Ginger, Spiral Ginger, Red Cane Ginger, or Scarlet Spiral Flag, bright ruby red spiky cones produce orange flag-like flower.

Red button Ginger care

Light- Red Button Ginger thrives only in full to part shade. Red button ginger thrives in full sun but also do well in partial shade, especially in hot weather. Plant your red button ginger somewhere where it gets at least six to eight hours of direct sunlight a day. Red button ginger may also get sunburn if it’s left in direct sunlight for too long, so place it in some afternoon shade, that would be best. Thus, place them accordingly.

Soil- Red button Ginger needs rich, moist soil that ranges between neutral (6.6 – 7.3) and slightly acidic (6.1 – 6.5). Plant your red button ginger in a soil mixture that is moist but also having well-draining capacity. It will thrive best in a rich and moderately fertile soil mixture. You can add up the nutritional value of your soil by amending it with organic matter.

Water- Water regularly to your Red button Ginger plant to maintain it’s moisture, weekly or more often depending on the weather. Red button ginger plants love water and should be soaked regularly to maintain moisture of the soil. It require at least 1 inch of water per week. Deep watering is sufficient in most climates, but you may need to increase watering if you’re experiencing especially hot or dry weather. Ultimately, never let the soil to be dry out completely.

Temperature- If temperatures stay above 50 degrees Fahrenheit, it will bloom flower most of the year. Red button ginger can survive during chilly temperatures. After the light frosts, it generally wilts and can be bounce back. After a hard freeze phrase, it can sometimes grow back from its roots.

Fertilizer- The red ginger plant grows best in rich soil, so fertilize with a high-nitrogen liquid fertilizer once in a month. Your red button ginger plant can thrive without fertilizer if you’ve planted it in enriched soil with some organic matter like compost. But, for an extra boost, you can periodically feed it with dome balanced liquid fertilizer once in a month.

Types of Red button Ginger

There are two types of Costus woodsonii include the primary specimen and the dwarf type. More than 80 type of species belong to the Costus or spiral ginger genus.

Costus woodsonii ‘Dwarf French Kiss’: It is smaller, more compact variety and grows from 24 to 36 inches tall having orange-red flowers.

Costus comosus var. bakeri or Red Tower Ginger: Formerly Costus barbatus grows almost 6 feet tall in zones 9 to 11.

Costus specious or Crepe Ginger: It is widely grown species of ginger, Malay ginger (or crepe ginger) is root-hardy and almost ruffled with 3-inch height and having white to pale pink flowers with a yellow center. The leaves are up to 12 inches long with fine, short-haired undersides. ‘Variegatus’ sometimes called variegated crepe ginger has large, soft, variegated leaves and red stems areseems like emerging from the ground.

Pruning

Pruning is a process of reduction of a part of plant that are not requisite the growth or production of plant.

By pruning regularly to red button ginger throughout the year is a good way to keep disease away. Sometimes foliage damage may also occur during the periods of drought or frost. If leaves or stems appear discolored, then use sterilized pruning shears to remove the damaged branches or leaves.

Remove faded flowers by snipping or pulling it off the dead flowers from their base, including any attached leaves with it. Also, cut or remove dead, browned leaves of the stem. Prune the top of any drooping stems to keep a plant from overgrowing.

Trim it into your desired height and width using pruning shears. Snip off any remaining leaves or stem offshoots that make the plant too wide. If pruning is done right before winter, then cut the stem down to the ground . It will have a better chance of surviving in cold season and re-flowering in the spring season.

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How to grow Red button Ginger form seeds

The Red button Ginger’s white fruit produces black seeds, which are widely eaten and spread by birds. This plant can also reliably reproduces by seed. Seeds are more harder to source and can take two to three years before flowering.

To grow Red button Ginger form seeds, follow the steps accordingly.

1. You will need a moistened seed-starting mix or a moisture-retaining medium to sow red button ginger seeds.

2. Soak the seeds in water for overnight.

3. Push the seed into the top layer of the potting medium and sprinkle a thin layer of the seed-starting mix on top.

4. Then, Finely mist the germination container and place a clear plastic wrap it from the top.

5. Put the container in a warm, bright spot not direct sun. Germination can take up to 2 to 6 weeks.

6. Then, Remove the plastic wrap for an hour everyday to circulate air in the pot, but make sure the potting medium stays moistened.

7. Remove the plastic wrap entirely when you see some signs of new growth in the plant.

Overwintering

Red button ginger havecold tolerant capacity to 30 degrees Fahrenheit with protection against frost. The plant have tendency to tolerate light frost for short periods. If you are in freezing temperature, mulch the roots which is heavy to protect plants from freezing or bring the plant in indoors to overwinter.

Water and feed sparingly during winter months and maintain temperatures above 50 F, if possible otherwise it will not flower. The plant will go dormant in the winter but will return automatically with the warm weather.