Re-Growing Vegetables Indoors With JUST Water & Sunlight

RE-Growing Vegetables

Currently, during the lockdown we are living under, we are feeling the pinch when we hit our local grocery stores in-person or via a delivery service in search of our favorite veggies. If you happen to come across a few of these beloved and nutritious items during your grocery run, chances are good that you will feel like you won the lottery. To help you not be in such a fix yet again, here are some ideas on how to make things running more smoothly for you and your loved ones.

Listed below are some vegetables which only require one week of water and sunshine to re-grow to a point where you can use them. This becomes very useful since many of us are observing “stay at home” orders. Remember to change the water when it becomes cloudy. Otherwise, this method requires very little effort. Just chop, re-grow, and repeat!

Re-Growing Scallion

1. Scallions

Re-growing scallions are easy. Chop off the green part of it to use in making your dishes. However, leave about an inch of the white bottom intact. Put the stubs in a narrow tall glass or small shot glass. This way the scallions can lean without falling over. Make sure the container you choose is clear to allow sunlight to filter through to the scallion roots. Fill the glass with a little water and place the container in a sunny spot. You should see some growth within a couple of days. Leeks can be re-grown in the exact same way.

Re-Growing Carrot Greens

2. Carrot Greens

To re-grow greens from carrots, you can reserve the tops of them. Just chop off the carrot tops, leaving about a half-inch to an inch of it. Place it in a shallow container, add water and put in a sunny spot. Within approximately a week, you should be able to harvest it for cooking. You can re-grow greens this way for all members of the turnip family, including beets, turnips, parsnips.

Re-Growing Romaine Lettuce

3. Romaine Lettuce

If you wish to re-grow lettuce, just remember to reserve about 3 inches of the bottom of it. Place it, bottom down, in a mug or bowl which will allow the lettuce to lean without falling over. It should be able to hold enough water to cover the bottom half of the lettuce and allow sunlight to reach the it. Fill the container you decide to use with water until the bottom half of the lettuce is submerged. Then put the container in a sunny window. You should see growth by the next day. You might even have enough to cook with within one week. Bok choy and napa cabbage can be similarly re-grown.

RE-Growing Fennel

4. Fennel

Fennel has such a strong taste that you don’t require more than a few snips cuts from the bulb to add to your dishes. Therefore, keeping a bulb on-hand in your kitchen windowsill works perfectly. Place the bulb in a mug or bowl that can hold enough water to cover the bottom half of the bulb while still allowing light to hit it. Fill with an inch or so of water. After one week in a sunny spot, green shoots will sprout from the top.

If you have patience, these other vegetables can easily be re-grown with a little bit more time:

Re-Growing Garlic

1. Garlic

Re-growing garlic is easy. You just need just one clove of it to begin growing garlic scapes at home. Their taste is mild and sweet. They make a great addition to many dishes.

Re-Growing Basil

2. Basil

If you have a few basil leaves available, then you can re-grow a fresh new batch to include in your meal prep. Just place a few cuttings of it in a glass filled with water and put it where it can receive sunlight. You can plant them in soil once the roots grow to approximately 2 inches or so.

Re-Growing Lemongrass

3. Lemongrass

To re-grow lemongrass, cut a few inches above the bottom of the stem and submerge them in a glass filled with around an inch of water. Then leave them in a sunny spot, adding more water when necessary. It should begin growing roots within two or three weeks.

Re-Growing Celery

4. Celery

In order to re-grow celery, cut roughly 1.5 – 2 inches above the root base of the celery, place the root in a shallow bowl filled with water and put it where there is sunlight. Patiently wait a week and you should see little leaves beginning to sprout from the middle. You will have to re-plant these in soil to continue its growth.

If growing your own vegetables is not your thing and you have kids at home, you might like to take them on some virtual field trips instead.

What veggies have you tried re-growing? Let us know in the comments below!