Around 10 years ago, a handful of growers began figuring out how to eke a ginger crop out of greenhouses in northern temperate climates. We here at Stonecipher Farm jumped in when we learned of this new possibility, and have been crushing it since our first year. We have grown to become the largest producer of ginger and the largest producer of turmeric in the state of Maine!
Inside this ginger greenhouse it feels like you’ve entered a different part of the world instantly. It’s hot, humid, and the leaves and stalks of these plants smell and taste like ginger. It makes the whole greenhouse smell sweet, spicy and earthy.
We absolutely love growing these tropical crops in our greenhouses. Each spring we buy the "Seed" in early spring, and trick it into waking from it's slumber with lots of artificial heat. After 3 long months of careful tending in our nursery house, we plant them into the earth inside our high tunnels. We have found some very successful strategies for getting the ginger and turmeric to size up quickly, so there's something worth harvesting by the time the ground freezes.
What is harvested is "young" ginger, and turmeric. This is a highly valued commodity in much of the world where ginger and turmeric are grown, but cannot be shipped due to it's fragile and short lived nature. While young, it has no skin, and spoils quickly. The product in this young state, is juicier, spicier, and has no fiber! So all candied ginger, and all pickled ginger (think sushi) is made from the ginger in this young state. But none of us have ever seen the fresh product for sale, because of the fragility of it in this young state.
Like an heirloom tomato, or frost sweetened spinach, our young ginger and turmeric are treats you can only enjoy close to the source! We dig our ginger and turmeric the day before we market it, wash it, trim it up, and deliver this beautiful gem-like spice to you!
Folks note not only the beauty of our products, but the intensity of the flavor. You can expect to use half the amount you would be accustomed to using in your recipe, smoothy, juice or pickles. And if you can't use it all, just freeze it, and grate as needed. We love pickling ours, and candying in honey, for year round use.
Our ginger and turmeric have been in all the best restaurants and specialty food stores in Maine. Here are some of the more interesting products we have had our ginger and turmeric used in:
Duckfat (restaurant) sodas
Allagash Brewing beers
Turtle Rock Farm pickles
Night Moves Bread stollen (Christmas bread)
