Infinite Vegetables

So I’ve just been binge watching a selection of the gardening fandom’s content on youtube, and thought I’d share my basic notes on how to hack infinite (to an extent) veg. This also means you can get loads of free veg from bits that you would normally throw away from dinner prep, rather than buying seeds from the garden centre!

Basil Propagation (also works for mint and rosemary)

• Cut off a top three-inch (ish) sections of basil just below a “node” (cluster of leaves on a stem)
• Cut off any leaves on the nodes that would sit below the water
• Place the cutting into a glass or mug of water, full to 1cm below the brim
• Up to three cuttings per glass/mug - careful as roots may tangle
• Place cuttings in plenty of light and a warm area - increase the available light after roots begin to show

• Plant each cutting in its own pot of very wet soil after at least 18 days when root branch systems are visible
• Voila! You now have a bunch of new baby basil plants that you can love and cherish

(Pro tip: when pruning or harvesting, cut just above a node as new shoots will not grow from a section of bare stem)

[Oregano, thyme and sage propagation is the same as basil but roots take longer to grow (about 4 weeks), and before placing in water cut the bottom of the stem at an angle. Ensure no brown, woody stem remains before planting in water.]

Regrow Onions (Red or White)

• Plant base of onion (cut off) in water, plant in soil once root system is established
• Or - if onion has multiple shoots, carefully peel away the outside layers of flesh, separate the individual plants and plant these in soil up to the top of the white bulb area

Spring onions

Cut off bottom 1in of the plant and place, roots-down, in water or soil. New shoots will regrow within a few days and can be cut off to use as a herb, like chives

Garlic

• If a garlic clove has a green shoot, place this in 1cm of water and roots should appear after a week or so
• Plant this clove a thumb’s depth in the soil, at least so that the whole clove is covered
• Your garlic clove should produce a whole new bulb in 8 months

Carrots

• Cut off top 1 inch of carrot
• Plant top-upwards in soil, 1cm deep
• Leaves will grow within 1 month
• No new carrots will grow but leaves are edible and can be used in salads

Lettuce/Celery/Leeks

• Cut off the bottom few inches of the plant
• Plant this section in soil so that the base and all roots are covered but the cross section top of the plant is at least 1inch above the soil line
• New leaves will start to regrow after a week, you can cut these whenever you’re ready but if the longer you wait, the more sturdy and well established your plant will be
• 50% success rate