Save the end from your lettuce and put into a little water (about a half inch). Change out the water every day. The lettuce will grow back incredibly quick too.
The one on the left i cut today. The middle one yesterday and the one on the right, the day before. You can see how much it grows in just two days!!
But don't feel limited to romaine. This technique can also be used with green onions and celery.
Are there any other things you can buy form the grocery store and grow in your garden? I would love to know!
ReplyDeleteIf you live in the tropics you can grow the best tasting pineapples you ever had. Cut the top off the pineapple with about two inches of fruit with the leaves intact. Put it in a container with potting soil covering the fruit with leaves exposed. Don't put in direct sun light and keep it moist, It should start rooting in a week or so and showing signs of new leaf growth. In a month or so you can transplant it in the ground in a sunny place.Sandy well draining soil is best. Or you can start it in a big pot and just move it to a sunny spot. Once it gets going do not over water it. Once or twice a week water the leaves. Be patient. It takes from a year to a year and a half to mature. This is evident when the bottom of your pineapple starts to get yellow/gold and the color slowly creeps up the fruit until the whole thing is yellow and it's ready to eat right away. Once you've tasted a ripened on the plant pineapple you'll not want a store bought. Actually the canned pineapple is more to what a plant ripened pineapple should taste like!
Deleteyou can re grow cerley
DeleteI am regrowing my own Romine Lettuce and celery right now in my kitchen just in water.
ReplyDelete@MoniqueCloutier
How long does it take to see results when you first do it? I put mine in last night :). Not that I expect results this soon. I used to grow leaf lettuce (like buttercrunch).
ReplyDeleteI saw my first leaves coming up after about 2 days. In order to keep it growing I had to move it into soil after a couple of weeks when there were some good roots established. It will grow for a while in just water but I think it needed more nutrients to really thrive
DeleteIt really depends upon the your tap water. I have plants that have been growing in our water here in NJ for years!
DeleteYou can do this also to onions,leeks,celery and maybe cabbage(not really sure about the last one,but i think it can be done)
ReplyDeleteGreat idea! I have yet to try leeks!!
Deleteyes I've done cabbage ... cut a cross on the top of the base, you'll get four separate sets of leaves. I've never left them long enough to see if they'd grow very big. you'll need to put the roots in soil
DeleteYep cabbage is 'done'able! I started realising these methods can be done when my cut vegies and herbies started sprouting in my fridge! and without water! These are fantastic way to use the plant to its fullest! And I guess 'they' appreciate it too! ;)
DeleteDo you keep them in the fridge or can they be left out on the counter? OR do they have to be put by a window for sunlight?
ReplyDeleteI keep them on the counter where they get some sunlight
DeleteThis is so neat! Just curious: Where are the nutrients coming from in this method? In traditional growth, the nutrients come from the soil. Any idea if these have any nutritional value?
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I am not sure. I know they are able to make their own food from the sun and water but i imagine that without any minerals from the soil that they would be lacking full nutrition. I ended up moving mine to a pot with some soil a few months into the project. They grew great either way!
DeleteThe main nutrient for plants (carbon) comes from the air.
Deletethere really isnt very much nutrition value to any kind of leaf lettuce to begin with. It is mostly made of water anyhow. So I cant imagine you'd be losing much there. However I have been growing mine for 4 days now and just starting to see growth. Not like she shows in the picture
DeleteThey need sun, air and water to make their own food. Is this where nutrition might come from? Hydroponic gardening does not use soil, though I think in commercial set ups they provide nutrients in the water. Interesting thoughts.... Maybe a scientist can help us out!
ReplyDeletehydroponics often uses fish waste to fertilize the water..
DeleteThe word "often" is misleading here.... most hydroponic growers use fertilizers in liquid form, some organic, some not, but fish waste is rarely used because of the smell...
DeleteI have tried doing celery before and then planting it outside (which didn't work out that well). How long until you are harvesting the new growth?
ReplyDeleteCelery is really hard to grow no matter what technique you use.
DeleteI tried planting celery stumps 4-6 inches high, they eventually just rotted.
DeleteMy best success has always been with green onions. Romaine has given me some trouble each time. Eventually I moved my rooted romaine into a pot with soil to grow. I kept in on the counter in water for about 3 weeks before moving to soil.
ReplyDeleteI have quite a few plants growing now so I am able to continually pick off the outer leaves and leave the inside ones to grow.
Green onions are definitely the best way to get into growing your own groceries. They grow really fast and you will have a whole new onion in under a week. http://backtomyrootsblog.blogspot.ca/2012/02/regrow-green-onions-shallots.html#.UQfFmx2ZlSM
I discovered this when going out to my compost pile and finding my green onion ends had grown into new green onions.
ReplyDeleteI planted old green onions and they grew.
DeleteLemon grass will also "sprout" when the root is put in water. Ours has been going since September.
ReplyDeleteHow many times can you replant the same stump of lettuce? I have my first one in a pot of soil and it is amazing how much it is growing. Do you leave the stump in the soil and slice off the top or remove the entire plant?
ReplyDeletecelery, beets, lettuce, potatoes(organic because non organic is sprayed with a non-growing agent), onions, pretty much any root vegetable. If you have the room in your yard you can also save the seeds from vegetables, dry them and then start them early in the spring and plant them outside for the summer- i did this with cantelope last year. and as for how many times you can replant the same stump of lettuce- you should be able to keep it and not have to regrow it. Keep it short and trimmed and you will continuously get fresh leaves. If you leave it and let it grow tall the leaves get bitter but are still edible.
ReplyDeletealso pineapple tops, basil(cuttings will root in water), ginger, horseradish, garlic, avocado, PEANUTS!(raw) there are so many things to grow from the store
ReplyDeleteGreat suggestions! I have been meaning to try avocados and pineapple. I am not sure either of them will fruit well here in Canada but I enjoy a challenge!
DeleteI have been growing pineapples for years here in VA. The mother plant will die once the fruit has been picked, but there is always a baby shoot that comes from the original plant. I have been growing them for about 9 years now and have eaten about 15 fresh pineapples. All of this from one top from a local grocery store. You'll never want a store bought pineapple again after eating one of the fresh grown ones. You must be patient though; it takes about 2 years from shoot to fruit.
DeleteDo grow the pineapple inside or outside?
DeletePineapples need a lot of sun. I can't imagine one getting enough light inside.
DeleteLeah, I thought avocados grew on trees. How do you regrow them???
ReplyDeleteYou can grow them from the seed inside! There is some debate about whether or not it will fruit though. But either way you get a cute tree!
DeleteIt will fruit eventually, but the tree grows to around 30ft tall and it doesn't fruit until it's fully grown, so you have to have space to grow and unlimited patience!
Deletei read somewhere that it takes at least 4 years before an avo tree can fruit. and pollination is tricky cuz they are sorta self pollinating. meaning one day the flowers are male and the next male. so dusting the flowers with the same "duster" on both days is essential.
Deleteoops *female
DeleteYou can start lots of plants this way (I've had lots of success with pineapples (even got some fruit)) but once they establish roots you'll have to move them to a pot with soil or add nutrients to the water if you want to go the hydroponic route
ReplyDeleteI've grown green onions for years now. I never add them to soil, just swap out for clean water. I just put 4 Romaine ends in some water yesterday. There is already a little bit of green growth. Anyone have any suggestions on how long i should keep them in the water before i move them to soil. And how big of a pot? I really wanted to keep them on the window sill, if at all possible.
ReplyDeleteI bet a few drops of minerals (supplemental from health food store) in the water would load the veggies up and make them more nutrient dense.
ReplyDeletewhy couldn't you use some liquid fish emulsion?
DeleteI boil potatoes & give the water to the plants. Loaded with magnesium. I boil eggs the next week to use in food dishes and also feed my plants with the water. Lots of Calcium. My plants take off growing faster than usual. I have a huge garden summer and winter.
ReplyDeleteGreat tip, thanks!
DeleteGarlic is very easy to grow I just take one bulb put it in a pot ''dirt water it grows just like green onions sometimes cut the green tops put them in salads nice hint of garlic use it in many things grows pretty fast...
ReplyDeleteI tried that, but after the green shoots were about 3", they died off and I planted 4 sprouted garlic sections.
DeleteI start my garlic in Oct here in TN. Plant each clove about 12 inches apart and 2" deep. They grow fast but aren't really ready for about 9 mos.. The plants will grow "scapes" (curly shoots with buds at the ends) these are delicious chopped up for salads or sauteed in butter or olive oil and added to pasta dishes.
DeleteThere are minerals in water.
ReplyDeleteYou can also start Thai basil from restaurants. just put a piece with a couple leaves in some water. It will root along the stem and then you can plant it in dirt.
ReplyDeleteI knew green onions would regrow in water and I'm happy to know about these other veggies. Btw, add water to your empty milk jug and swish it around then feed your plants with the milky water. It's a balanced plant food and it's free. I've been feeding my plants with it for years.
ReplyDeletety all for all the great tips,,i am going to try these methods , what a great concept..
ReplyDeleteDoes it take two pineapple plants to get fruit on one? I've had my pineapple that I started 4 years ago from the tops cut off a store pineapple. It is now in a large pot and is 4' or more tall. All I have is the green spikes that have taken over my dining room. I live in the Northern climate area, Central WA, so can't transplant it outside.
ReplyDeleteYou don't need two pineapples to get fruit. Try placing a small apple in the top most crown of leaves, cover the top and apple with a plastic bag, close the bottom with a string. The apple will release a gas that will stimulate the crown to form fruit.
DeleteBecause the pineapple is a bromeliad, water from the top, with a liquid plant fertilizer in the water. Here in Florida we have to beat the raccoons/opposums to the ripening fruit. They will be smaller than the store bought, but will be juicy, sweet, and have the best flavor. Good Luck with yours. -kdonat
humic acid by my company Ansazi Gold Organics is an 100% natural minreal supplement which could easily enhance these techniques/ anasazigoldorganics.com; it really does work....
ReplyDeleteLadies and Gents....
ReplyDeleteAlso go to Pinterest, look up gardening, pin the ideas you love and always have them.
They have homemade recipes for plant growth and also an awesome one for killing mosquitos.
Great ideas for those lettuce containers you buy and using them as little greenhouses to get your seeds started.
Enjoy & Happy Easter!!
I cut a sweet potato in half, stuck 4 toothpick halfs in each of the bottoms to raise it up off the container bottom and added water. After a month or so I was able to divide the glorious vines and plant them in soil. Now come spring I won't have to purchase sweet potato vines for my containers!
ReplyDeletethis is great! Yes this does work, however that much after 3 days is a bit dramatized. I have been doing this for a while now, and you see growth just starting around 4 days. Also the browning takes a while to happen. Not like in the photos. But thanks for the good tip, Just be a bit more realistic in growing times.
ReplyDeleteHow do you know she didn't just get lucky, or have really good water? Better yet, if that water has added minerals it takes a shorter time.
DeleteI live in an apartment in Florida, and I am trying to re-grow lettuce. Its been 4 days and I really haven't seen any growth. Do you think this could be due to the water?
ReplyDeleteMy first try didn't seem to be taking either (for about a week). I found that by cutting a small slice across the bottom of it (just used a steak knife and slid it across making maybe 1/8 inch deep cut) the lettuce started sprouting in the next couple of days. I used this same method with the next two attempts and they started sprouting new leaves in just a couple of days.
DeleteGive it a try! Good luck!
I saw this link/idea on Pinterest and just started my romaine about 3 days ago and I saw progress the very next day! I swear it grows so fast that between the morning and night there is a definite difference. We have well water, not sure if that makes a difference. I am really hoping that I can transplant this to a pot or my raised veggie bed outside and it will keep going. Question: should you ever peel away the outside non-growing layers? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteIs romaine lettuce safe to eat if you don't change the water everyday?
ReplyDeleteI just tried this and had several new leaves growing in 2 days! Amazing! I made an 'x' in the bottom. I'm wondering when I can plant it outside, and if I plant it as is, or if I remove some of the orginal out leaves.
ReplyDeleteall of the comments and advice is great information I cant wait to get started on all of the ideas
ReplyDelete