Don't throw away the root end of your produce, it can be regrown! - Part 4 - Celery

Regrow Celery

This final posting is just to prove to you that you can also regrow celery, it's just a little slower of a process. Green onions will grow back in a week, Romaine lettuce takes longer, whereas Leeks will take longer still. Celery on the other hand seems to be in no real hurry.

Simply take the root portion and place it in water at first. You will see a little growth soon enough. (Please use filtered water.) Once the plant looks like it really has decided to work with you then plant it in soil.  Now, don't promise the kids when it will be done, simply forget about it for a while.

This is after a few weeks of regrowth. Notice how the new growth shoots out of the center. The existing stalk material is not regrown. It is old and unappreciated. No wonder celery has such attitude!

Don't throw away the root end of your produce, it can be regrown! - Part 3 - Romaine Lettuce

Regrow Romaine Lettuce

How many times have you cut up a head of Romaine, gobbled up the good part, and then tossed the remaining parts? 

Have you ever heard about, tried or maybe considered replanting the root to see what happens? It actually works! A root is even better than a seed, because it is the seed after it did a lot of work. By the way, the root never stops working, even on weekends. People replant all the time with green onions.

I usually start a Romaine root off in water, for convenience, but then i quickly move it over to soil.  The water is convenient because when I am cutting up lettuce, and thus eating food, I do not want to be playing with dirt too. Here's why I like soil better though for long term benefit:

• Water has only two basic nutrients, Oxygen and Hydrogen, with trace amounts of other minerals.
• Tap water, as opposed to well water may also contain Chlorine and Fluorine, both in highly toxic amounts.
• Soil has many of the plant specific nutrients ready to go. (I never use Miracle Grow or other things like that, but you do what you are comfortable with.)

Note: If you have a well  or public water, please always take the time to filter your plant water first, just like you would if you were drinking the water yourself, because eventually, if you think about it, you will be. 

This is a from a Romaine root that is a few weeks old. Notice that it is unbelievably tasty and crisp. It is outside, but not in a garden. It is in a pot right by my front door. If you plant lettuce in an un-fenced garden, then every woodchuck in town will receive a text message that "there be lettuce". When they are done with it the plant will still be rooted, but will look like it was weed whacked. See, even animals believe in re-purposing.

Here is a shot of several roots at work in different stages of growth. The two in the front right were planted the same day, where as the leafier ones are a few weeks old. That is FREE FOOD! Notice too that although the plants are indoors, I have them right by a South facing window with plenty of light.

In Conclusion

This is not only a great way to save a few dollars, but it is enriching as well. Plus, never discount the positive effect that several small green plants can have on a person's physiology inside a closed up home in the dead of winter.  Those little guys pump out the oxygen 24/7.  You should notice a higher level of energy, etc. Plus, rumor has it that the body actually enjoys seeing the color green as often as possible.

So why should you spend money on plants, and then more money on food, when instead you can regrow lettuce and have your free plants become your free food?

Don't throw away the root end of your produce, it can be regrown! - Part 2 - Leeks

Regrow those Leeks

Ever cut up a huge leek, taken the good part, and then chuck the rest? Most folks do, but why shouldn't you? Here are two green ideas of how to re-purpose the tiny scraps:

• Compost
• Chicken feed (seriously, either your's or your neighbor's)

The better option however, could be to use the top green leafy parts as compost, ground cover or chicken feed, while taking the bottom white root part and replanting it. Whoa! You might think... "Replant it? Why would I do that?". The reason why most people don't do this isn't because they shouldn't. It is because nobody else does it. Is that a great reason? Please don't get me started... The food growers would hate if we all did this. However, there is really no good reason not to.
 
When you consider the price of produce you may start to see the wisdom to doing this. Sustainable produce. If you are like me and only buy organic food, then you can see the financial reason even more acutely as organic produce runs higher in price.

How To Replant Leek Roots

You can plant the roots in small containers. You can initially do this indoors of you like, if it is cold out. Tip: Don't skimp, The taller the root the faster the regrowth. Think of the root as the size of the 'growth engine' since that is exactly what it is.


What can you expect? All situations will vary based on light, heat, soil and most importantly, the replanted root size. Here are a few pictures of some of my replantings:

After only a few days in water. (Cat not included.)

You can see that after a few days I plant the root in soil (right). The leeks grow fast.  From seed they take 120 days, so you should see much quicker growth when starting with the engine (root) already built.

Eventually I plant these guys outside. The plant in the garden is substantially larger than the one in the previous picture, but it is not so easy to tell.  I will enjoy leeks from this plant all Spring, Summer and Fall as long as I just cut what I need. Uprooting it would end the golden goose. 

In conclusion, this can be a great little project for parent s and kids. You will get to see something positive for your efforts, save a little coin and bond with the little guys.

Don't throw away the root end of your produce, it can be regrown! - Part 1 - Green Onions

Regrow those Green Onions

How many times have you cut up a huge leek, taken the good part, and then tossed the remaining parts? What about with Romaine lettuce? At the very least, you should make some effort to re-purpose these scraps. Assuming that you do not live in a city, desert or condo, here are at least a few ways that they can be re-used with very little effort:

• Compost
• Chicken feed (seriously, either your's or your neighbor's)

However, if you want to spend only a few more minutes you can really get a lot more out of them by replanting the root portions. People do this all the time with green onions. With green onions you can just put them in a glass of water and they will grow back in about a week. There are just a few things that you need to remeber with green onions:

• The water needs to be changed once per day, or it gets toxic smelling
• Nutrition Factor

Green Onion Nutrition Factor

Water may seem like the easier approach when compared to planting the green onions in soil, however is is just about saving a few moments? Here is what needs to be understood:
Water will need to be changed every day, whereas soil will not. This means that while planting in soil may take a few more minutes, it is much lower maintenance in the long run.
Water alone isn't nearly as nutritious as soil for several possible reasons:

• Water has two basic nutrients, Oxygen and Hydrogen, with micro amounts of other minerals.
• Tap water, as opposed to well water may also contain Chlorine and Fluorine, both in ultra high amounts.
• Soil has all kinds of nutrients ready to go.

Whether you have well water or tap water, and whether you are using water alone or you are watering the soil, please always take the time to filter your plant water first, just like you would if you were consuming the water yourself, because eventually you will be. In addition, soil is easier to maintain, because you just snip and eat. The onion will keep growing. With onions in a glass of water, you have to take them out, cut them, stick them back, etc.