How To Grow Vegetables From Scraps

Wait! Don’t throw away that stalk of celery or the white bulbs of that bunch of scallions. Did you know that you can re-grow vegetables, right in your kitchen so you’ll always have some of the most popular veggies we use in our daily cooking? Best of all, you don’t need a green thumb, a garden or even warm, sunny weather to do it! (featured image via Remodelaholic) 

Green Onions

Since most recipes call for only the green part of green onion (also called scallions or spring onions), we often wind up wasting the white bulbs. But those bulbs are the heart and soul of the onion plant! When you’ve finished with the green tops, put the bunch of white bulbs into a glass of water and leave it on your windowsill. In just a few days, you’ll be begin to see new green onions springing up! Harvest them as you need them, but be sure to change the water every few days.

 

Leeks

You know how leeks look a lot like great big green onions? They can be regrown the same way as green onions, too! Follow the same bulbs-in-a-glass-of-water routine the next time you have a leek or two leftover and you’ll wind up with your own supply for months to come.

 

Celery and Fennel

These two veggies are also candidates for the water trick. When you buy a bunch of celery or fennel, simply cut off the base and put it, stalk tips facing up, into a bowl of water (just enough to cover the bottom of the bunch, not the whole thing). For these two, however, go ahead and keep them out of direct sunlight.

 

Garlic

Have you ever opened your pantry and found a forgotten bunch of garlic with green sprouts on the ends? Next time, don’t throw it away: regrow it! Plant the garlic in a small pot just as you would flower bulbs in the fall: sprouted tip facing up. You’ll end up with a great houseplant and some fresh garlic for the kitchen.

 

Ginger

Cut off a small piece of the ginger root you bought at the grocery store, plant it in a pot and wait for it to sprout. When you need ginger, you can dig up the whole plant, cut off whatever you need from the root and then repot the plant.

 

Romaine Lettuce

You can regrow many types of lettuce, but stem-based romaine is the easiest. Just as you did with the celery, cut the base of the lettuce head off and put it in a bowl of water to regrow. You’ll be amazed how quickly a new head sprouts up!

 

Julianne Puckett is the creator of Yankee Kitchen Ninja, a blog about what she calls “stealthy homemaking” — healthy recipes that are quick and easy to prepare, DIY gardening tips and the occasional craft project. A designer, writer and former suburban-dwelling IT professional, she lives in rural Vermont, where she struggles to balance the siren call of her inner farmer with her love of cute shoes and cocktails.