Typically, when people prep vegetables and herbs for cooking, they toss the stumps, stubs and stems — hopefully in a compost rather than the trash. But these humble leftovers can be the beginning of a windowsill garden that can freshen up your cooking during the dark days of winter, while also helping reduce food waste. “And it’s a fun way to also get kids involved in gardening so they can see how nature works,” says Sandi Duncan, editor of the “Farmers’ Almanac.”
Working with produce from the grocery store will yield good results. However, Justine Kandra, horticulturist for the Kemper Center for Home Gardening at the Missouri Botanical Garden, recommends purchasing locally grown produce at a nearby farmers market if that’s an option, because there’s a potential for more flavorful, higher quality harvests.
And you aren’t limited to veggies that are sold with roots still attached; you can do this with many herbs, greens, and vegetables that are self-contained plants that can independently produce roots. (The method does not work, though, on produce such as tomatoes, cucumbers, squash and peppers.)
Here are five plant options for inspiration. All you need to get started is a cutting board and knife.
Use a loose-leaf lettuce still attached to the stem, such as little gem or romaine, rather than lettuces that form a tight head (like iceberg), because they don’t re-sprout well using this technique, according to Amy Pennington, author of “Tiny Space Gardening.” Cut the leaves off the stem about two inches from the bottom. Then place the stump in a container with water coming halfway up its side. “Pint glasses work well because they get narrower towards the bottom so you can wedge the lettuce in,” Pennington says. “They also allow the roots plenty of room to grow, which is good because they can get to be three or four inches long.” Expect to start harvesting leaves to toss into your salads or slip into your sandwiches in as little as two weeks. Or you can wait until roots fully form, transplant the lettuce to a soil-filled pot, and bide your time until the full head grows back.
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2024-01-31 12:33:05Z
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