While many of us are home and without access to outdoor spaces or materials to grow, (and perhaps a good portion of us have never grown anything ever before), we thought it would be useful to share some tips and tricks for sustainable at home gardening! Don’t be intimidated when we say ‘gardening’, growing veggies and other plants from home is for everyone! This handy outline of quick ways to repurpose existing vegetables to regrow them at home and produce seedlings will mean that you may never have to visit the grocery store for vegetables again! Any of these below could be started with a little bit of window space and some water. Once you start your garden, make sure to dedicate it to Dr. Jane Goodall through JGI’s ‘Seeds of Hope’ Program here.
Sprouts are the easiest thing to grow!
Items needed:
- Clean source of water
- Hemp (or other course weave) bag
- 1/4 – 3/4 cup bean or seed (any bean or seed can be sprouted; you can mix beans like different lentils for a fun variety pack). Use 1/4 cup for smaller seeds, 1/2 cup for lentil size, 3/4 for larger beans). Experience and experimentation are the key to happiness. No hard and fast rules here
- Medium sized mixing bowl
Get Started
- Put the beans or seeds of your choice into the mesh bag and plunge the bag in and out of a full bowl of clean water a few times
- Empty the bowl (preferable into potted flowers)
- Put the bag back into the bowl and fill the bowl with water again
- Let soak in a dark place for 12 hours (general rule, but feel free to find an on line reference for the specific bean/seed of your choice)
- After 12 hours give them a good rinse, then remove excess waterby giving the bag a good ‘windmill spin’ outside (my version of a salad spinner too)
- Repeat this process every 12 hours (after the first 2 or 3 cycles, you will see the nice little sprouts emerging from the beans)-You can put in the fridge at this point, or let the sprouts get longer for a day or two
To store, it is important that the sprouts are dry after the last rinse and they are not sealed. Windmill spin one last time and pour into a low glass container lined with a small dry cloth, leaving enough cloth to fold over the top.
That’s it!
Here’s a starter list of things you can regrow:
- Any bean for sprouts from legumes
- Any onions (leaks scallions, large onions)
- Garlic
- Fennel
- Bok choy
- Cabbage
- Lettuce
- Celery
- Beets
- Raddish
- Rutabagas
- Turnips
- Parsnips
- Carrots
- Potatoes.
More Ideas:
Herbs sprouted from cuttings:
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme, Basel, Oregano, Cilantro, Sage, Thyme, Lemon balm, Mint
These all make great microgreens:
Flax, Basil, Chives, Parsley, Mustard, Arugula, Sunflower, Wheatgrass, Kale, Bok Choy, Celery, Broccoli, Cabbage, Corn, Lentils, Radish, Beet
MUSHROOMS:
You can even start mushrooms by removing the cap and sticking the uncut base stem into soil. Kept warm and most she begins to grow again
Some Fun Ones:
- Shungiku
- Fenugreek
- Purslane
- Sorrel
- Amaranth
- Clover
- Cress
- Mizuna
- Endive
- and Fennel!
The Jane Goodall Institute is a global community conservation organization that advances the vision and work of Dr. Jane Goodall. By protecting chimpanzees and inspiring people to conserve the natural world we all share, we improve the lives of people, animals and the environment. Everything is connected—everyone can make a difference.
