How to regrow vegetables
During the winter months I enjoy making home made soup. I always use leeks and green onions, and have discovered that I no longer have to buy them! I simply regrow them!
Step 1:
Leeks and onions with about an inch and a half of root and bulb left.
After chopping up the leeks and green onions, I saved about a one and a half inch cutting from the roots up.
In this picture, I had actually set the roots in water overnight and you can see there is already some regrowth!
Step 2:
Six inch pots with 2 inches of organic tree mulch
I added about 2 inches of organic tree mulch to ensure adequate drainage, then filled the pot 3/4 of the way with potting soil.
Step 3:
Roots and bulbs in soil
Dig little holes that will cover the roots then pat the soil firmly around each little bulb.
Be careful not to go too far up with the soil, you don’t want it to get into the growing/eating part of the vegetable.
Step 4:
Day 1. Leeks and green onions, potted, watered and sitting in a sunny window.
Water well and set in a sunny window. Use a window that faces south if you live in the North Eastern United States.
Basil, Sage, Leeks and Green Onions
Green onions after only 1 week! Ready to snip off the ends and add to your favorite recipes!
Leeks after 1 week growth
I regrew a cabbage from the core.
Would you share how?
Here is a way to grow your own marigolds and only pay for the original seed. Get the seed at a dealer. Plant. Let the plant grow and flower. Let the flowers turn brown. Pick and let them finish drying. do not pick when they are wet or damp! They will just rot. After a week or two of drying you can store them for the next season. Air tight container is best. They will grow for the same season as picked, but will have better germination if you wait till next season. You will have more seeds than you know what to do with, When storing the seed pods, pinch off the very top part where the flower was. Keep the seeds in the pods. This way they stay dry and you have a natural holder for them. When you plant them just rub the pod gently over them area that you are to plant them and it will break open and the seed will scatter. Barely cover the seed. Water one time a day. Watch them grow. You will never have to buy seeds again. For the “wild” look scatter the seed VERY heavy in the area until the top of the ground almost has a coat of seeds. The plants are pretty and are natural insect repellants for roaches and some others. Plant them around your door and along the side of the building. I live in central Florida. Bug heaven! I do not spray for bugs. I just use plants. 🙂
I really thank you mike for good work
take opportunity.
Wonderful information… but I’m not quite sure how to regrow celery…can you proved more details…I would be most appreciated
I’ve regrown celery this way: chop all stalks off at one time, place the root ball into a shallow cup/bowl w/1″ water, put in a sunny window, wait for roots then transfer to the garden (or a pot in the sunny window). I find the new celery spicier than the first.
I tried regrowing celery. It made a few roots but the part of the stalks I left when cutting the root ball off, started to rot. I didn’t know what to do with it so I put it in my garden. It stayed green for about a week and died. What did I do wrong?
Debbie,
I did not write this article so I really don’t know how to answer. Maybe somebody else, possibly the author of the article will see this and might be able to help.
When usin diatomaceous earth( D E) be sure it is FOOD RADE
I was surprised to find some peppers are perennial! I keep a few jalapeno plants in pots near the back door in California, and often can find peppers to pick out of season.
In Florida we have a garden season that stretches from Sept to May. I often plant numerous varieties of Tomatoes and evaluate those that grow best and produce the best and most fruit. I then select the best of the best and take cuttings before our occasional frost hits and wipes out the fall plants. I cultivate the cuttings in pans of clean sand and ground coconut husks. If you cut only the growing branches at about 4 or 5 inches long, coat the tips with rooting hormones and bury the cut ends about 2 to 3 inches deep you can have numerous great plants available for the spring garden in January. It helps to not let the cuttings dry out or over water them.
Andrew, thank you for sharing your vegetable growing strategies with us and others!
Does this idea work for pepper and tomatoes?
I’ve thrown out just about all and any indoor plants recently (many large and beautiful) because of an infestation of soil mites. Watering with very hot water and even placing potting soil in the oven did not seem to erradicate the problem. So any indoor gardening at this point is not appealing. Any solutions??
Anne-Marie,
A lot of folks use an insecticidal soap, but I wouldn’t do it on edible crops.
what about a homemade insecticidal soap (eg, soapy water), or a homemade horticultural oil (veg oil, water, etc)?
Katie,
I think homemade insecticidal soap would be fine.
I use diatomaceous earth for most everythin
mix it in the soil and sprinkle some on top
It is comletely harmless to humans. Dont breathe the dust.
thanks for wonderful tips – I”ve been re-growing veggies for a long time. Onions,
leeks and spring onions are wonderful. When harvesting your homegrown
cauliflowers, head brocolli and cabbages, cut the heads from the plant THEN cut
a cross into the stem of the plant left in the ground. leave in the ground and
water and maintain the plants as before. 4 more of each type of veggie will
sprout from the stump that has been crossed-voila – baby veggies. goodluck
Any ability with any of the lettuces??? Has anyone tried that? I get so tired of throwing rotten lettuce out because it spoils so fast. Would like to grow my own indoors. I have plenty of warm sunny windows which face the southwest. Have my herbs growing right now.
Best to use romaine lettuce. set the base in water and watch roots grow. you can either leave in water or plant in soil
Thank you for posting this information. This was very helpful.
What are the temperature requirements?
room temp, sunny window
If you cut the top portion of a carrot off, and plant it, it will grow new green growth at the top and if left long enough, will go to seed, and you can collect the seeds for the next season.
I did the same with a pineapple top, it took a long time to make a small not so tastey pineapple but it got everyones attention! and was fun.
Darold
The pineapples in the southern climate (From the bottom you cut off) will regrow to pineapple plants that produce pineapples every year- but it takes 3 years for them to mature, clip a pineapple every year. Florida
Awesome! I was wondering what type of vegetables I could grow indoors in the northeast year round. Thanks!
Hi Mike , You only just touched this subject. You can also easily regrow celery , carrots , cabbage (save the heart. Celery will actually continue to grow before you eat it (just place it in a shallow dish with a little water in a sunny window. To regrow carrots I place about 1 inch of top in a bowl with a teaspoon of azomite (rock dust and about 1/4 inch of water . The carrots will grow roots in a few days and can be planted in the garden again ! Also many seeds can be sprouted easily for delicious and nutricious food !
Alex,
Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience on this subject. We love it when visitors to this site have good information to offer. Thank you so much!
I love your ideas!
I love your ideas. I grew sweet potatoes in a very large flower pot ths year and they were great.
cabbage works. I GOT LOTS OF NEW LEAVES, with multiple stems.
how do you regrow cabbage?
you use the base and submerge it in water, leaves will begin to sprout from the top
I enjoy harvesting my cabbage in the garden by cutting them off the stem right below the head. The stem if left in the ground will begin growing back multiple heads on that stem. We have been able to them pick multiple small heads right before freeze up for the winter die back and I keep them in my vegetable drawer and am able to use them over several months.
I read that it will work also with celery but what other vegetables will regrow. Herbs perhaps?
Geesh……..you are a treasure box if information. Thank for taking the time to post for all of us.
Such wonderful information on your website.
.I love reading all your garden tips! Thanks. Think I will give this a try!
what do you mean by growth plate at the bottom. would like to regrow onions but do not understand instructions.
The growth plate would be the part where the roots attach.
Love your website, Would the same apply to celery?
All the best
Yes, just make sure to not over-water
I love this idea. I stumbled upon this on my own a couple of years ago and shared it recently with my garden club. They were fascinated by the idea. When I use any onion, I cut the sides off all around, leaving the “growth plate” at the bottom…stick it in the pot, and within a day or two it begins to regrow…never-ending onions.
My Chinese friend told me that his family planted the cut off tops of carrots. . The carrots do not grow back but the green tops do grow and are used as a green vegetable.
I love that idea!
Carrots will come back from just the top, I have had good success at this, however I grew mine outside in the ground, It is not an overnight thing, cabbage will regrow from the core too, I have had the trunk to live for years for producing seeds.
I tried with onions and celery. They grow good for a few weeks and then they get root rot. Don’t know what I am doing wrong.
Your over watering.
Over watering. I put them in the ground, they do better that way
Is it possible that it’s actually not root rot but a grub that is eating the roots? I had a nasty looking rather large unidentified grub that was eating some of my root plants and at first I thought it was root rot until I found one of them in a root. I have done onions and leeks and never had a problem. I have always grown them outside but I am starting inside now. Just planted the roots of bok choy to try a new one.