Food From The Scrap Pile: A Tasty Science Experiment

Regrowing food from what might otherwise end up in the scrap-pile
can be fun, educational and may feed you many times over!

As a child I enjoyed growing an avocado tree from seed, potatoes from the eyes of an already potato (and even got several pounds of potatoes as a result) and even tried growing the tops of a pineapple. Although sadly I didn’t end up with more pineapples – Go figure our environment  It was part science experiment and part recycling of food scraps. More recently I have re-grown green onions from cut off ends I wasn't using and have also tried to plant the garlic that was growing in my pantry. Probably at one time or another I have tossed the seeds from whatever I was eating into dirt to see if it would grow.

It gets a little trickier now-a-days with anti-growth agents being added to food in grocery stores, but if you eat organically grown foods it becomes an option for sure! 

Carrot Tops (I have read that other root crops would work well for this too, like beets, turnips and rutabagas)
Celery
Garlic
Ginger Root 
Green Onions/Leeks
Lemongrass

Tomatoes from fresh seeds (Oddly I let several late season non-ripened tomatoes stay right in the garden and each spring I have several ‘volunteers” growing!)
Potatoes/Sweet Potatoes

Whole seed spices


Think of the possibilities use whole seeds from your spice or herb bottles, seeds from fresh fruits and veggies. Certainly some of these options allow the items to be started from seed then planted, others allow for the scrap to go right into the ground, and still others can be started in water. It's an endless way to re-used what Mother Nature has gifted us!

It would be an excellent way for my children to learn a little more about the garden. They watched with awe as the green scallions regrew on the window sill. So what's next? Waste not, want not.

Have you ever tried this? What are your success stories of food you have grown from scraps?