Picture this: You are in your home with too much in your hands (not precisely because of a certain virus, forget about that for a second), and want to experiment with something new to learn. Maybe you are not so into kitchen affairs but you wonder what things you may regrow in your list of vegetables, for instance, just to save some bucks.
Well, how about lettuce? This green thing, special for healthy things like salads, and not so many ones like hamburgers, is the perfect candidate for these kinds of experiments. It may even seem geeky (and in some ways, it is. Do not judge people!)
Let’s see how to regrow lettuce from the things you have already used from it, to see if that is even possible to do. A little bit of a disclaimer would be that romaine lettuce works great with this method, but that does not mean you could not try it in any other type of lettuce.
What do you need to regrow lettuce?
Before starting to answer how to regrow lettuce, you may be wondering what do you need to regrow lettuce? Let’s see if any of these requirements are obtainable and or in your house.
First up, you need lettuce (duh). Most specifically, the stem end of the lettuce. You could use romaine lettuce which is the best kind of lettuce to use, but any other variety of lettuce will do just fine.
You would also need a shallow dish and water and a window sill with lots of sunlight. If you do not have good sunlight at home, you could also use those indoor grow lights that sell on Amazon or your local store.
Finally, if you want to take this project to another level, get a pot with drainage holes. Also, potting soil will do wonders for your lettuce regrow project.
How to regrow lettuce on water?
To partly answer the question of how to regrow lettuce, let’s find out how to regrow lettuce on water. This should be an easy task to accomplish, but you need to follow the instructions thoroughly to get the best results.
First up, you would need to trim it down. You do not need the whole thing to regrow it (if that were the case, what is the point? Just eat it!). Cutting it crosswise from about one to two inches from the base would give you many clusters that come from the root, that are held together because of it. This is the part where the new things would pop out, where the magic happens.
Then, place it in a container that is not too big. You might need to remove a part of the outer layers of stems. A jar, can or cup can do the trick. The important thing is the stems sit upright in it. Now, add some water to the container (about half an inch is okay), while keeping the root completely submerged.
You would need light, most specifically natural light.
You can be okay by using growing lights too, but the sun is the star of the show (get it, because is a star…) Putting the pot closer to a window or the windowsill itself is all they need. The best way to know you are doing it okay is by looking at the color of the leaves. They could change overnight if you are doing it just right.
Water is important, just like for us. Giving them water every one to two days may look like a lot for the little plant, but it is recommended for growing because you prevent the water from being moldy or getting dirty by just changing it and, in those conditions, the lettuce may rot and you do not want that. The new leaves just need a couple of days to appear if everything looks the way it should.
It is not eternal though: Your lettuce would stop growing around the two weeks. Simply cut off some of the leaves and get them into your favorite meal. Do not panic if you see that your lettuce does not look like the ones you get from the market. Regrowing lettuce would not make the same vegetables with large green leaves that you may be expecting, but hey! They are functional enough to make a sandwich.
How to regrow lettuce on soil?
Similar to what happens to celery, scallions, and onions, lettuce would do okay on water but it would do its best when planted on the soil, just because it is rich in nutrients compared to what water may offer. So, how to regrow lettuce on soil?
Water can be a good environment for your experimental lettuce to grow, but in the end, it could not look the way you expected, especially in size. If you want something even bigger than just the kinds of things you may put in the sandwich you eat, consider planting the lettuce in soil.
As an answer to how to regrow lettuce, we may be expecting that only by cutting and throwing somewhere would yield the same things you get when you buy them from the grocery store. And while that may be occurring some times if you dedicate too much care and time to it, it would not be the same as that (especially having cut the plant in the first place)
Conclusion
Finally, how to regrow lettuce then? Well, it is not that difficult to do but you need to have in mind that, if you go for regrowing in water the leaves would not be as big for a full dish, but more like a sandwich or something similarly sized. For that, you may be good by planting it in a pot with good soil.
Remember, like all plants, lettuce needs some care especially when you are regrowing it on water. You will need to change that water around every one to two days, even if it looks quite exaggerated. Rotting may happen when you forget to change the water.
This is a project you are doing by yourself at your home so, the results could differ. At least, this is an almost free experiment that you can try over and over, with the help of your kids if you want. It is not very hard and can also help the planet because it is recycling after all.
