You’ll really enjoy recycling and replanting your kitchen scraps once you start seeing what your vegetable trimmings can do.
Believe it or not, with some natural light some of the best vegetables and herbs from the grocery store can be regrown in just water or soil.
That’s all you’ll really need, actually. You can re-grow fresh greens indoors on a window sill, or re-grow scraps on your kitchen counter.
Either way, your indoor garden can start with a fun herb selection or eventually turn into a full-blown vegetable garden.
You’ll want to do this in the winter months and early spring because this will be particularly exciting if you want to breathe fresh life into your home from the moment it was just a measly food scrap.
Also, if you can save just a little more money from vegetable trimmings that you’d already throw out anyway? It’ll be very rewarding.
Here are some of the best and easier vegetable trimmings to regrow, to begin with, to help you master your indoor kitchen garden.
Similar topics:
- 10+ Pantry & Food Items to Stock Up on in Case of an Emergency
- 7 Things in the Kitchen That Are Making You Sick
- 11 Clever Ways to Save Money on Groceries
Helpful Supplies You May Need:
- Pots — You can recycle and upcycle any type of container you have on hand!
- Newspapers — great for covering soil to create extra moisture
- Sharp kitchen knife
- Trays & Starting pots
- Organic compost
- Organic fertilizer
10 Simple Veggies & Fruits to Regrow from Kitchen Scraps
1. Grow a pretty Pineapple plant and have it bear fruit from Scraps
You can grow a beautiful plant from the leafy top of pineapple — the part you would usually discard or compost — that can flower and bear fruit if done right.
How to regrow it:
- At the grocery store, pick a healthy pineapple that has beautiful, good-looking leaves.
- Cut the top part of the leaves cluster off about 1/2 inch below the base.
- Cut the rest of the pineapple as you would usually, and munch while you prepare the top for planting.
- Place the crown by a sunny window to dry for 3-5 days. This enables removal of the moist core to let it dry out, and discourages it from rotting.
- Next, locate a glass jar and place the root of the crown in an inch of water in the jar.
- Insert toothpicks around the crown’s edge and hang it in the water just as you would an avocado pit (explained next). Put another way, most of the crown should only be positioned “hovering” over the water with the bottom of the pineapple being only immersed 1 inch.
Place the jar in direct sunlight in a bright sunny place in your home, and rotate out the water with clean water once per week until you see roots. You should see roots appear in the water bath after 2-3 weeks.
When the roots are 2-3 inches long, the pineapple crown can then be safely removed and replanted in light soil in a plant pot of your choice. Make sure it’s getting at least six hours of bright daylight— giving your new pineapple plant a suitable home to bear fruit.
2. Grow Beet Greens at Home (No Green Thumb Needed)
Beets are a beauty to regrow. All you have to do is buy a bunch of beets that still have the tops attached. Trim off the greens and use them to cook! (Those leaves are tasty!).
How to regrow it:
- Cut off the top of the beets, LEAVING AT LEAST 1/2 INCH OF BEETROOT.
- Then place them cut-side down in a water dish.
- Leave resting in a sunny spot in your kitchen to let them regrow.
You should expect to see beet greens in a matter of a week. Just trim what you need and cook away.
3. Green Onions in a jar
Green onions are probably the most common and easiest vegetable to re-grow. All you need to do is cut them from the roots by about an inch, and leave them in a glass of water. Place by a sunny window and trim as they grow. Easy peasy!
4. Grow New Potatoes From Peelings
The eyes have it when it comes to regrowing potatoes: that is to say, potato eyes. Each of the little dormant buds on the skin of potatoes is a possible sprout so this is what you have to keep in mind when you are cutting or peeling.
How to regrow it:
- When you are peeling your potatoes, make sure that the pieces from scraps have at least one to two eyes.
- Let the pieces stay and dry overnight or for a few days at room temperature to help them retain their moisture on the inside and that they get dry to the touch.
- Once the potato halves or peels are dry, replant them in 8 inches of soil, about one foot apart (for outside) or in a large enough pot with 8 inches width and depth for indoors.
Potatoes don’t need too much direct sunlight, so anywhere in your home that gets natural light should be fine. You can replant them from the pot to outdoors, or enjoy a new potato indoors after just 10 weeks.
5. Spring Onions in soil
Spring onions may also be regenerated from a regular onion bulb.
How to regrow it:
- Make sure there is about half an inch of growth attached to the root bulb portion before you cut.
- Drop that cut portion into the soil directly and cover it with a layer of moist soil.
- Try to keep the soil moist, regularly while it’s growing by a sunny window.
Just keep chopping off the green sprouts to eat when they appear, until they have regrown again. Don’t ever have to buy spring onions again!
6. Grow Carrot tips for salads from scraps
If you want to reuse your carrots, carrot greens are really tasty in a salad!
How to regrow it:
- First, place the carrot tops (heads) down onto a tray or plate.
- Add water to the plate so that 1/4 “of water flows past the surface of the carrot head.
- Place beside a sunny windowsill making sure that the scraps are receiving a fair amount of sunlight.
- Keep rinsing out the water until you see new growth.
Once greens from the carrots have been regrown, transfer them to an indoor container with soil and water them when the soil gets dry. Trim, cook, and eat!
7. Celery
One of the more easy vegetable scraps to regrow is celery.
How to regrow it:
- Just cut the celery off, and leave the base for about an inch or two
- Place the base in a bowl of water
- Leave it where sufficient sunlight can be obtained and rinse out the water every week
As new leaves start to sprout from the center, allow it to gain thickness for about a week before being moved into a pot of soil.
8. Romaine Lettuce, Bok Choy, Cabbage
Romaine lettuce, cabbage, and bok choy are as simple as celery to regrow!
How to regrow it:
- Leave the lettuce stub in a bowl and fill the water halfway through
- Let the growing happen with natural sunlight
Placed by a sunny window the leaves will regrow in just a matter of days. Once that happens safely move your stumps to a soil pot!
If you decide to do this, you’ll realize how much fun it is to recreate food from what was once just ‘food waste’. You’ll also really love free plants!
You may also like:
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- 11 Clever Ways to Save Money on Groceries
- 10 Meal Prep Tips That’ll Make Your Week So Much Easier
- 6 Solid Good Reasons to Shop with a Grocery List
Author: Rebecca
Hi, my name is Rebecca and I am the face behind Everything Abode! I am a home and lifestyle writer based out of Vancouver Island. When I’m not writing or exploring mountains and beaches with my furry rescue, I love spending time learning creative ways to manifest a healthy home. Thanks for stopping by!
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