I do a lot of Vietnamese cooking at home , and the unique flavour of lemongrass is one of my absolute favorites .
I screw it in theseVietnamese pull pork tacoswhich are so simple to make , but taste fancy enough to serve at a dinner party ( the pulled porc is great with Timothy Miles Bindon Rice too ) .
I also love making lemongrass simple sirup to use in mysparkling summertime sangriaandfresh lemon grass - powdered ginger ale , which arejust the thingto revive you on a hot summertime afternoon after being in the garden all day .
When I first discovered you’re able to propagate lemongrass from storage - bought stem , I drive right down to the local market and picked up a bundle of fresh lemongrass husk to root in water supply .
pass around plant from living herbsis a fun way to score new plant for your garden . It ’s like you ’re getting free plants , even if you bought them .
Think of it this way of life : You spent a few dollar bill for a handful of lemongrass stalks , but you ’ll turn them into hundreds of new stalks over the path of many years . And I ’ll show you exactly how to do it !
Growing lemongrass in a cold climate—it’s possible!
I rooted storage - bought lemongrass oil for my previous garden in Southern California , and the plants grew healthy and unassailable for seven years ( flop untilwe go away ) and are still thriving under the fresh owners ’ care .
( This is what thelemongrass looked like after two yearsin the dry land . Each thud begin as three rooted stalks . )
Rather than grasp them up and taking the plants with us , I decided to begin a stain - unexampled lemongrass clump in ourcurrent home in Central Oregon . It wo n’t survive frost in this clime , but it ’ll wave outside in summer and survive indoors in winter .
That mean the Modern lemongrass oil is a container plant that moves happily between our theatre , glasshouse , and railway yard , and we ’ve since repot it into a larger container ( than what you see in these pictures ) so we can have a bigger harvest .
I ’ve update this post ( originally issue in 2010 — one of the very first posts on my web log , if you could consider it ! ) to show my fool - proof method acting for starting your own lemongrass oil industrial plant from store - bought stalks . ( Even if you live somewhere stale . )
I ’ll also share what I ’ve learn after rooting the herb in a warm mood versus coolheaded clime , because there was abigdifference in rooting sentence !
How to propagate lemongrass from store-bought stalks
1. Start with fresh lemongrass with the entire stem intact.
The stem you buy do n’t need ( and probably wo n’t have ) stem at the bottom , but they do need to have the the entire theme ( substructure ) entire .
This is important to note because some storage - bought stalks come with the keister cut off — and those wo n’t work for propagation .
Start with at least five or six sizeable stalking . Not all of them may rootle , so this ensures you get enough rooted stalks to pop out a fresh plant off rapidly .
2. Trim any brown, older leaves.
To start , disregard off the firm , topmost leaves where they start to split apart . you could simply make a fresh cut ( a few inch down ) across the top of the angry walk . Getting disembarrass of the dead leaf just keeps things neater , as they ’ll eventually fall off and turn slimy anyway .
attempt to balk peeling the woody outer layers that imprint the stem , as new leaves will mature from within these bed .
3. Place the lemongrass stalks in water.
Put the stalks in a shock or vase and fill with a few inch of body of water . Place the jar in a sunny locating like a south - facing windowsill and then … just waitress .
Change the water supply a couple time a calendar week ( or when it turns cloudy ) and within a week , you should see new leaves begin to acquire from the top . ( But sometimes they wo n’t appear until much later , and I ’ll explain why in the next step . )
4. Continue changing the water until the roots grow nice and long.
New roots and leaves usually begin to emerge after about a week .
Wait until the root are at least 3 inches foresightful and the stalks have begun to separate ( via offshoot still hunt ) before you establish them .
Here ’s what I noticed my second metre around with propagating lemongrass :
In summer ( early September ) in Southern California , the roots grew 1 centimeter in Week 1 , then 2 to 3 column inch in Week 2 , and finally 4 to 5 column inch in Week 3 .
By the final stage of the third hebdomad , the works were quick to go in the ground .
Contrast that with Central Oregon , where I embark on take root the lemongrass in gloaming ( late November ) in a cheery window :
Little core of roots started appearing in Week 2 .
The later boner only hinted they were still animated with tiny white dots !
tight forrad to one month later on ( early January ) , the first stalk had roots that were 2 inches long .
The root on the late bloomers did n’t attain 2 inches until a few weeks after that ( in late January ) .
As you’re able to see here , there was even a super later bloomer that did n’t start up rooting until Month 2 !
The amount of ignitor and rut that come in through your window matters if you desire tight - growing lemongrass oil .
So rooting them in winter or assign them in a due north - facing windowpane will importantly slow their growth . As long as you continue to change out the H2O each hebdomad , however , the stalks will keep humming along until they ’re ready to get .
Don’tget discouraged and give up unless you see any stalks rotting in water . Out of the six stalks I tried , only four rooted — but one of them took its sweet time and started rooting right before I almost wrote it off . ( It eventually had a increment spirt once we pop off the solstice and the solar day get long . )
5. Prepare a nutrient-rich bed of soil for planting the rooted stalks.
Lemongrass is an herbaceous perennial that care rich , moist soil , sizable fair weather , and warmness .
Picture it in its aboriginal tropical and sub - tropical conditions — if you inhabit north of zone 9a , you ’ll need to grow lemon grass as a potted industrial plant .
Gardeners in zone 8mightbe able to keep lemongrass alive in the ground , but at the first freeze , the foliage will die back .
Related : Find your first and last frost dateswith my custom planting calendar
you may up your chances of the plant coming back in spring if you apply a heavyset stratum of mulch on the territory to keep the roots warm over winter .
I commend a high - quality potting soil ( you’re able to usestore - boughtorhomemade potting soil ) amended withcompost , worm castings , and/or anall - purpose organic fertilizer .
Like all grasses , lemongrass is a with child feeder ( entail a plant that involve lots of nitrogen and other nutrients ) , so at its bloom between June and September every year , it benefit from a tedious - tone ending organic fertilizer to avail it thrive .
For containers , you could plant a single stalking in a 3 - Imperial gallon good deal to keep it as a houseplant .
If you require the herb to grow into a size you’re able to harvest , implant several husk together in a minimum 5 - gallon potful .
I likethese cloth potsbecause they air prune the root , ensue in big , beautiful plants that never get rootbound . It ’s the same mathematical product I use forgrowing tomatoes in container — you wo n’t go back to pliant spate once you try textile .
Just be sure you pay aid to the brand you purchase ; most fabric hatful only last a few years unless you choose thenon - degradable versions from Root Pouch .
My testimonial ? If you wangle with lemongrass oil passably regularly , set out with a 5 - gallon locoweed , then move the clump into a 10 - gallon pot once it ’s nice and bushy .
Lemongrass will grow as braggart as you allow it , so keep in mind the amount of space you have and how much lemongrass you require to harvest .
Read more : Find outhow deep the roots of your vegetable will growin the garden
In a garden bed , plant at least three angry walk together for a larger yield .
Because it likes wet , lemon grass does n’t mind land on the stiff - ey side ( particularly in drier climates ) , but it should never sit in soggy soil . If you know in a rainy part , your soil should be well - draining to keep the husk from rotting .
With optimum conditions and lot of sunlight , lemongrass in the primer coat can originate into quite a muscular bush , about 5 feet grandiloquent and all-inclusive , and sometimes even more .
It can become so dense that some citizenry even grow the herb as a screen door or hedge , so be sure to pick a spacious lasting orbit in your curtilage for it .
Did you know?
Lemongrass ( Cymbopogon sp . ) is the beginning of citronella fossil oil , a natural mosquito repellent . Because of this , it ’s sometimes hollo the citronella works but should not be confused with theothercitronella plant , Pelargonium ‘ Citrosum ’ .
6. Plant the lemongrass stalks in soil with the crowns just below the surface.
The crown is the base of the stalk . Cover it light with soil but do n’t bury the whole stalk .
Water exhaustively and spread a thick layer oforganic mulcharound the plant ( being measured not to mob the mulch up against the radix ) to conserve moisture . I like using wood chips , but shredded bark , chopped leaves , or straw also work .
Keep the soil equally and lightly moist , but not waterlogged .
In its aboriginal surroundings , lemongrass prefer regular rainfall and humid conditions , so this is one of the rare representative where I recommend irrigating the works from overhead , especially if your summers tend to be very hot and dry .
7. Harvest your lemongrass (and give your friends some free plants).
Your lemongrass should be ready for harvest home in two to four months . Wait for the stalks to reach at least 12 inches tall ( not including the green leaves ) and 1/2 inch wide at the fundament .
Harvest the stalk by tear off or cut the stalk about an inch above the background . It will continue to raise and divide over time .
Propagating lemongrass oil from an live plant is even easier than propagating from storage - bought stubble . you’re able to cut the chaff away from the plant ( with rhizome entire ) to share with a ally .
If your lemongrass has go too unwieldy , you could dig up the thump , fraction it , and found the infant clump around your pace .
Keep your lemongrass prunedeach year for a tidier spirit , or let the leaves fan out and savor its beautiful fountain - like descriptor .
How to Propagate Lemongrass From Store-Bought Stalks
Lemongrass is one of the easiest herbs to propagate . Just buy a few stalks from the entrepot , put them in piss , and watch them root !
Materials
Tools
Instructions
Notes
Rooting time will vary considerably depending on the time of year you pass around your lemongrass ( warm in summertime , irksome in winter ) .
In optimum summer conditions , roots may start to emerge the first week and be quick for planting within a calendar month . In low - light conditions , root may not appear until a couple of weeks in , or be ready for planting for at least two months .
Did you make this project?
This post update from an article that originally come along on October 1 , 2010 .
