Gleadless Valley
Community Action Group
Re-growing food from kitchen scraps.
Looking for a healthy way to get more from your garden? Like to know your food is free of the pesticides and other nasties that are often sprayed on commercial crops? Re-growing food from your kitchen scraps is a good way to do it!
There’s nothing like eating your own home- grown vegies, and there are heaps of different foods that will re- grow from the scrap pieces that you’d normally throw out or put into your compost bin.
It’s fun. And very simple …..............
Green Onions
If you’re looking for a plant that is easy to grow from scraps, look no further than green onions. Once you’ve chopped up a green onion for cooking, all you need to do is submerge the white end with the roots in a container of water (leaving the top of the plant above the water’s surface) and place it in front of a window. The onions will begin to grow roots and the green part of the onion will grow back. When you need onions for cooking, you can harvest the green tops and the base of the plant will continue to grow. Remember to change the water periodically to keep the plant healthy, or pot up in compost.
Celery
Like growing green onions, growing celery from leftovers is also fairly straightforward. When you chop up the celery, leave the base of the plant in tact. Sit the celery base in water and leave it in the water for about a week. It's recommended that you change the water every couple days. After a week or so, you will notice small, yellow leaves growing from the middle of the plant and the outer stalks will start to deteriorate. At this point, you can plant your celery in soil, either in a pot or in your garden (since celery is a cool weather crop, you’ll need the temperature to be warm enough for growing but not too hot).
Romaine Lettuce
Growing romaine lettuce is similar to growing green onions and celery. Cut off the lettuce you plan to use and leave a couple inches at the base of the plant. The romaine heart can then be set in water. New leaves will start to grow from the center and the outer leaves will die (and should be removed).
If you’d like, you can eventually plant your romaine hearts in soil and start growing lettuce in your garden.
