Stop throwing old food scraps away, because believe it or not, there are ways to regrow food from scraps! Here are 22 foods that magically regrow when placed in water. You’ll never have to buy celery, lettuce, or green onions again.
22 Food Scraps That Magically Regrow
1. Celery
Cut off the bottom half of your celery plant (the part that would be thrown away anyway). Place it in a bowl of warm water, and keep the plant in direct sunlight. As soon as you notice the thickening of the celery stem, you can move the recycled plant into some soil, or keep in in water.
2.Lettuce
Don’t throw away those leftover leaves! Place the leftover leaves in a bowl in an area with lots of sunlight. Simply mist the leaves with water a few times a week. You will begin to notice roots forming on the lettuce leaves, as soon as this happens you can transfer the lettuce to soil and you will have a new plant in no time at all.
3. Avocado
Avocados can be expensive when they are not in season, so you can combat the expense by regrowing avocados. Wash the avocado pit and use toothpicks to suspend the pit over warm water. Be sure that the water covers an inch or two of the lower half of the pit. Keep the pit in a warm environment and keep in mind that it can take up to 6 weeks to see sprouts forming. Once long enough, you can move it to direct soil.
4. Potatoes
To regrow potatoes, all you need to do is allow the peelings to dry overnight and then plant (with the sprout facing up) in four inches of soil.
5. Sweet Potatoes
Cut the sweet potato in half, and suspend with toothpicks above some warm water. Roots and sprouts will begin to appear after just a few days. Once the sprouts reach about four inches, twist them off. When the roots on the sprouts reach one inch long, you can plant the sprouts.
6. Ginger
Looking for nature’s cure-all for stomach woes? Try ginger roots! Ginger roots are extremely easy to go, so you will never run out once started. Plant a piece of ginger root in potting soil, making sure the buds are facing upwards, keep the area moist and you will begin to notice new growth.
7. Pineapple
Cut the top off your pineapple and suspend it above warm water. Make sure that the water reaches the base. Keep in direct sunlight. You should begin to notice sprouts in about a week, and then you can transfer the pineapple into the potting soil. If you live in a cooler environment, it is best that you grow your pineapple indoors. It takes a while, but you should have a new pineapple in a few years.
8. Onions
To regrow onions, cut the root (leaving about 1 inch of the onion) and cover with soil. Place in a warm, sunny area and keep the soil moist for a few weeks.
9. Pumpkins
This growing process is as simple as recycling your old jack o lantern. On November 1st, place your old jack o lantern in a hole in your garden and fill the inside of the pumpkin with soil. Next autumn you will have a garden full of pumpkins. It’s just that simple!
10. Peppers
Growing your own peppers is easy, as they require little to no care, simply plant the seeds in soil and place in direct sunlight. That’s it!
11. Tomatoes
To regrow, simply save the seeds that you were likely going to throw out anyway. Allow the seeds to dry out, and plant in rich potting soil. Keep the plant indoors until you notice growth, and then you can transfer the plant outdoors.
12. Basil
Basil is one of the easiest herbs to regrow. Leave a stem (about 4 inches high) in water, make sure that the leaves are above the waterline. Leave the glass of water in a well lit area but not in direct sunlight. Roots will form quickly, and then you can transfer the basil outdoors.
13. Cilantro
Put fresh cilantro cuttings in a few inches of water. Wait for roots to form and then move outdoors.
14. Turnips
Root plants (such as turnips, beets, or parsnips) can be easily regrown. Keep the tops of the turnips and place in some water. You will start to notice new green tops after a few days. Make sure that you allow the root to fully form before transplanting.
15. Cherries
While this is an extremely long process, it can be a worthwhile one. Save your cherry pits in cold storage for approximately twelve weeks. Simply clean the pit and place in a lidded container. Move outdoors after the twelve weeks is up.
16. Lemons
You can actually grow indoor dwarf lemon plants! It does take a few years for the tree to bear fruit. Be sure to clean the seeds before planting, and plant in a soil rich with nutrients.
17. Carrots
Use carrot tops to regrow healthy greens. Place the carrot tops in a bowl of water, make sure that the top is only half covered. Once the tops have grown sprouts, you can transfer the carrots outdoors.
18. Garlic
Okay, so it isn’t possible to regrow a garlic bulb, but you can regrow the sprouts using this great method from Food Revolution. Place a bulb of garlic in a small jar, and submerge the bottom half in water. After a few days, sprouts will begin to form. Trim the sprouts and enjoy on top of a baked potato.
19. Lemongrass
Cut off the tops off of lemongrass and place the stalks in water. Change the water every couple of days and you should begin to see sprouts after a few weeks. It is important to remember that lemongrass needs to be kept warm all year long.
20. Mushrooms
These are a bit tricky to regrow, but it is absolutely possible. Using the stalk of the mushroom, place in the soil and leave only the top of the stalk uncovered. Harvest when fully grown.
21. Fennel
All you need to regrow fennel is a small portion of the base of the plant. Place the root in a cup of water and place it in direct sunlight. Once you begin to see green sprouts, it is time to move the plant outside.
22. Bean Sprouts
Soak a tablespoon of beans in a jar of water. Leave overnight. In the morning drain the water, and set the beans in an empty container. Repeat this process for a few days.
So, there you have it. 22 ideas to regrow food from scraps. Comment below if you have ever tried any of these. Don’t forget to check out these 12 herbs and veggies that actually grow in water.
You can grow regrow garlic as we have done it. Just seperate the cloves leave in fridge until spouting then plant in garden.
Does it then grow to a bulb
you do realize that avocado pit has to grow into a tree to produce more avocados right?
Yes. Just letting people know that if they live in the right climate, they could grow their own avocados fairly easily.
The avocado tree takes years to bear fruit.
An even easier way to grow an avocado tree is to just put the pit directly into soil and water it . I have done this many times. Most avocados will need a second avocado tree as a pollinator .
Hey, congrats for this very interesting and useful article! I didn’t know that I can grow by myself the half of the listed food, thank you so much for sharing this!
Of course nowadays you have to buy non-gmo in order to produce more veggies
I’ve done celery before and it was great, super fast too. Thanks for all the other great ideas.
I had grown an avocado tree last summer, took it inside about October.
When I put it back outside in the sun, it wilted, why???
I’ve never tried growing an avacado tree but, if it’s like most plants that were started indoors, or even spent much time indoors, you have to acclimate them slowly to the outdoors (gardeners call it “hardening” I think) before you can leave them long term. The process I usually use is to put the plant out in a shady spot each morning in spring, then bring it in at bed time. Do this for a week or two, making sure to water more often than you did when they were strictly indoor plants. Then, once you’re sure no danger of frost, leave out over night. After a few days of that, and assuming days and soil are nice and warm and that you’re seeing evidence that the plant is thriving, it s/be good to plant.
Awesome post! I’ve tried potatoes before but haven’t had much luck. Growing green onions (scallions) is a breeze though! And you can use the new growth in a week!
I had fresh basil from the farmers market and kept it in a jar of water to keep it fresh. After a while I noticed roots sprouting. The leaves stayed fresh for about 6 weeks before we used them up!
I’ve done tomatoes from seeds. I use the seed starter trays and then just transplant the little soil plug.
I’ve also grown Zucchini too – it’s easy.
We recently had grapefruit and the great-grandchildren were like can we plant the seeds. So, I did and guess what? They are growing. Also, great-grandson took apple seeds and planted, they are coming up as well. And he’s 10. We’ve got a small garden planted.
That’s awesome! 🙂