Yes, grocery store turmeric planting works well when you prepare the rhizomes the right way. Store bought turmeric can sprout and grow into healthy plants. You just need to wash off the growth retardant and choose pieces with visible buds on them.
Store bought turmeric growing saved me money when I first started out with this hobby. I grabbed a few rhizomes from the produce section for about three dollars total. After some basic prep work, those cheap grocery finds grew into tall healthy plants by summer's end.
The biggest hurdle with store turmeric is the growth retardant applied during shipping. University of Georgia Extension says you should wash rhizomes well to remove this coating. Commercial sellers spray this stuff on to keep the roots from sprouting on store shelves. Without proper cleaning, your turmeric may never wake up and grow.
I wash each rhizome under warm running water for at least two full minutes. A soft brush helps scrub away any waxy coating you can feel on the surface. Some growers soak their turmeric in warm water for a few hours after scrubbing. This extra step helps dissolve any retardant that stuck around after washing.
Supermarket turmeric sprouting tends to take more time than using nursery stock. The growth retardant slows things down even after you wash it off well. Expect to wait 4-8 weeks for sprouts to appear from grocery store pieces. Nursery turmeric often sprouts in half that time since it skips the retardant spray.
Look for firm rhizomes with no soft spots or mold growing on them. Fresh turmeric feels dense and snaps when you break it apart. Small green or white buds on the surface show the piece is ready to grow. These bud points become your first shoots once you plant them in soil.
Organic turmeric rhizomes from stores work better than the regular kind in most cases. Organic produce gets less spray during shipping and storage. I tested both types side by side one spring to see the real gap. The organic pieces sprouted about two weeks sooner and grew stronger right away.
Nursery suppliers sell turmeric rhizomes meant for planting if you want to skip the prep hassle. These cost more than grocery store finds but sprout faster and more reliably. When I first tried growing turmeric, I used store bought and lost a few pieces to rot. Now I mix cheap grocery turmeric with a few nursery rhizomes to hedge my bets.
Cut large rhizomes into 2-3 inch pieces with at least one bud on each chunk. Let cut surfaces dry for a day or two before planting them in soil. This callusing step prevents rot from taking hold in the fresh wound. Plant each piece about two inches deep with the bud facing upward.
Store your prepped rhizomes in a warm spot while you wait for soil warmth to rise in spring. A paper bag on top of your fridge works well for this short storage period. Check them each week for signs of sprouting or any soft spots starting to form. Once shoots appear, get them into soil right away for best results.
Your first grocery store turmeric crop might be smaller than expected at harvest time. That is normal for the first year of growing from store bought roots. Save some of your harvest to plant again next spring for better results. Second year plants from your own rhizomes grow bigger and faster than fresh store bought pieces ever will. The extra effort pays off once you build up your own supply of proven planting stock.
Read the full article: How to Grow Turmeric Indoors Successfully
