Grow vegetables from scraps on your homestead with this fun and easy experiment! Growing vegetables from scraps is a gardening trend that's been going for a while now, and it looks like it's here to stay. So if you haven't tried it, it's time you get on this trend–it's a really handy skill to master on the homestead, too. Help yourself to this infographic, which will make the experience easy for you. Find out what kitchen vegetable scraps you can start with and which vegetables are more challenging!
Grow Vegetables from Scraps with 10 Amazing Crops!
In This Article:
Easy Vegetables To Regrow
1. Garlic
Use a budding clove or the whole bulb. Fill a cup with water so it just covers the bottom of the cloves.
Take note, you will not grow new garlic bulbs from this method. What you will get are the greens, which are great in healthy salads and vegetable dishes. Learn how to grow garlic at home with this growing guide.
2. Lettuce
Take the lettuce base. Place it in water that is two fingers deep. Once the lettuce has some roots, you can plant it in the soil.
You cannot regrow lettuce from every lettuce variety. For this experiment, a healthy romaine lettuce variety will do quite well. Learn how to grow lettuce from scraps here, plus how to grow other lettuce varieties indoors.
3. Carrots
Cut off the top 2 inches from the crown of one carrot. Submerge the carrot top in water.
We have to remind you though, you are not growing a carrot root crop with this method. We are after the greens here, which are also great as a garnish for many delicious dishes. Take this guide on how to grow carrots if you want a year-round supply of whole fresh carrots!
4. Basil
Take 3 or 4 stems (10 cm in height) and place them in a glass of water. Once the roots are around 5 cm long, pot up individual stems into containers.
Basil is amazing and no homestead kitchen should ever be without it. Luckily, basils are easy to regrow from cuttings. In fact, you can root the cuttings right in your kitchen window sill. Learn more about growing basil indoors here!
Medium Level Vegetables to Regrow
5. Lemon Grass
Choose plants that look like they have some life left in them and cut the tops off. It should grow roots in 2-3 weeks. Change the water every couple of days.
For all those who love the Asian and tropical cuisine, you'll love this growing technique for lemongrass. Besides adding flavor and aroma to your dishes, lemongrass makes great indoor plants, which is a plus!
6. Celery
Cut off the celery basement. Submerge the basement in water for 3 days. After that, you can plant it in a pot.
See how easy growing celery from scraps is? So, the next time you chop off off the base of your celery, hold off throwing it away. If you love celery and want more of it, you can learn how to grow them from seeds here, and plant away! It also comes with a detailed guide on how to grow celery from scraps.
7. Onion
Chop off the onion bottom with all the roots still intact. Allow it to dry for a few hours in a well-ventilated area. Fill the starter pot with soil and create an indentation in the center to cradle the onion. Make sure it has good contact with the soil.
This is how to regrow onions for its onion green stalks to garnish your everyday dishes. Green onions are very similar to lemongrass. All you need is water and light, and they'll keep growing! This is how to grow green onions from kitchen scraps.
Hard Vegetables to Regrow
8. Avocado
Pierce the pit with four toothpicks and place the avocado seed half submerged in a glass of water. When the stem is 6-7 inches long, cut it back to about 3 inches; this will encourage new growth. When it hits 6-7 inches again, pot it up.
Take patience when regrowing avocado. It can take several days to root and a few more days to sprout. But, it will make a great kitchen countertop indoor plant.
Click here for a step-by-step avocado growing details.
9. Sweet Potato
Cut the sweet potato in half and pierce it with four toothpicks. Place it in a glass of water. Plant each shoot, and you will have a lot of them from only one plant.
Learn how to grow sweet potatoes from scraps. From scraps, I mean that withering sweet potato you forgot in the cupboard for days. Don't throw it away, but regrow it instead. Seeing greens sprouting from all over the seemingly dying crop will give you a thrill. Try and experience the fun we've had!
10. Pineapple
Extract the pineapple crown. Put it in a glass of water and change the water every few days. Once roots appear, plant the pineapple in a fast draining potting soil.
Yes, that is how easy it is to regrow pineapples from scrap. It takes some patience though because pineapples take a long time to root and even longer to fruit–like a year-long, long. But it makes a great ornamental plant with a great surprise once it bears fruit!
To grow vegetables from scraps is a fun gardening trend taking homesteads by storm. We cannot help introducing you to this gardening trend to help jump-start your gardening enthusiasm. Pretty soon you'll want to grow vegetables from scraps more and more–probably a garden full of vegetables! Start with these 10 vegetables and experiment on other vegetable scraps before you introduce the scraps to the garden compost.
Does this make you want to grow vegetables from scraps or what's left in your fridge? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Up Next: Growing Fruit Trees From Seeds You Save | Homesteading
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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on March 14, 2016, and has been updated for quality and relevancy.
Great idea, i think I will try it.
This is great , Thank-you
This is great, Thank-you