How To Regrow Food From Food Scraps

Cooking. Saving money. Teaching kids how food grows.  Attempting any type of horticulture.  These are a few of my favorite things.

We all did that avocado-suspended-on-toothpicks project in school. This goes a step or two further.

It's about the coolest way you can teach kids how food is grown...and they'll have such a cool sense of pride in knowing they've re-grown something they can eat!

Regrow Celery
Cut the bottom inch off a stalk and put it in a bowl, cut side up. Put a little water in the bottom of the bowl and leave it in a sunny place. In a few days, roots and leave form, and you can either plant it outside or transfer to a bigger pot.

Regrow Potatoes/Sweet Potatoes
Chuck about a quarter of a potato with two root eyes on it, and either keep it inside to watch, or put it directly in the garden, eye side up. There are a couple of tricks to this one, so you may want to print out these steps to be sure you get it all right! :)

Regrow Ginger
You need a piece of ginger with a "knob", or one with an arm sticking out of the main body.  Soak the root overnight, then bury it in a pot of really good soil with good drainage. Water often. Ginger actually does best in shade or as a houseplant...so it may be something I could actually NOT kill! :)

Regrow Green Onions
Slice the bulb and roots off, and put it root-down in a glass of water overnight. Replate outside or in a large pot the next day. It'll regrow very quickly!

Regrow Leeks
Just like the green onions, cut off the bulb and put it in a shallow glass of water. Change the water and wash the roots at least once a week. When they're big enough to eat, you're ready!

Regrow Romaine
Slice off the bottom inch of a head of romaine, and put it roots down in a shallow glass of water. New leaves will actually grow from the top!

Regrow Garlic
Put one single clove of garlic root side down in a few inches of potting soil. When the shoots sprout, cut them back so the bulb can grow...eventually you'll have an entire bulb!  You can use a clove off the NEW bulb to start another later!

If you end up doing any of these, please share your pics with me at laura@961joyfm.com!