Sure, you’ve heard that buying organic food over the genetically modified or pesticide exposed versions is ideal for your health, but it can get costly. Due to the limited supply of organic foods as well as the additional labor and maintenance required to produce them, you may be paying 20-100% more for an organic banana!
Fortunately, here are vegetables and herbs you can grow indoors using parts of the produce you would throw away anyways, and this can save you a pretty penny the next time you go grocery shopping.
Celery
To grow this healthy snack at home, cut off the base of the celery and leave it in a bowl with a little bit of warm water. Keep the bowl in direct sunlight, and in a week, your celery base will start to grow leaves. Transplant the celery in soil and watch it grow!
Romaine Lettuce
Similar to celery, keep the base of your romaine lettuce in a bowl with a ½ inch of warm water. Leave it to sit in direct sunlight, and in a week or two, your lettuce stem will produce fresh, new lettuce leaves for all your great salads. Transplant your lettuce to soil to continue growing. They should be full grown in three to four weeks. This process works for Bok Choy as well.
Garlic Sprouts
Are those tentacles?! Nope, those long green things growing out your garlic are green shoots. You can put them in a little water, under a lot of sunlight and grow a bunch of garlic sprouts. They are milder in taste than garlic cloves, and are great in salads, pastas and as a garnish.
Scallion
You can regrow scallion, (green onions,) in as little as five days. Simply leave at least an inch attached to the roots of your left over scallion, put them in a small glass of water, topping up the water if it evaporates. Your scallions will flourish.
Basil
Got some basil clippings lying around? If they have at least four inch stems, gather them up and put them in a glass of water under direct sunlight. When the stems grow two inches long, you can put them in some soil in a pot and grow your very own basil plant. No more basil shopping for you!
Onions
Unlike the other foods on this list, onions have to go directly in the soil to grow. Take the bottom end of the onion and plant it in a pot or directly in the soil outside. If it’s potted, water it when needed. The more of a bottom you leave on the onion, the better. At three weeks, the onion will develop roots. By the fourth week. It will sprout leaves.
As you can see, most of the procedures follow similar methods: a container of water and direct sunlight. Each process is fairly easy, saves you a lot of money and ensures that you are putting fresh, organic food in your body.
Carrot Greens
The ends of carrots you usually chop off and throw away will grow carrot greens if you put them in a dish with a little water. Set the dish in a well-lit windowsill and you’ll have carrot tops to use as a garnish or in salads.
Ginger
Like onions, ginger root can be planted in soil to regrow, but the process is a lot more lengthy. It can take a few months for it to sprout, and you should be able to harvest a fully grown bulb in 8 to 10 months.
Mushrooms
Plant mushroom stalks in soil with some compost or used coffee grounds and keep them in a moist environment, preferably where it will be cool at night. They can be tricky to grow, and within a few days the stems will either start to sprout new heads or rot.
Cilantro
Like basil, cilantro can grow roots if the stems are placed in a glass of water. Once the roots are long enough, just plant them in a pot. In a few weeks new sprigs will be starting, and in a few months you’ll have a full plant.
