Download Plants from Garbage – a winter activity! The garbage is a great

Plants from Garbage – a winter activity!
The garbage is a great source for new house plants! Below are some ideas for quick, easy,
and cheap winter gardening projects that anyone can enjoy.
Seeds - Germinating and growing plants from seeds that might otherwise have been
thrown out is one way to get plants from the garbage. Seeds from most raw and
unprocessed vegetables and fruits have a chance of sprouting, but you’ll probably have the
best success with larger seeds, Those of citrus fruits, squashes and melons sprout readily just wash them well, dry them overnight, and plant. You can also try planting dry beans,
apple and pear seeds, date seeds, mango seeds, or anything else that looks promising. Keep
the soil moist, and you should be successful. (But - don’t expect to harvest the same kinds
of fruits or vegetables with which you started. Many of these seeds are from hybridized
plants.) If the seeds germinate, find a sunny spot by a window, and remember to keep the
plants watered.
If you’ve never grown a plant from an avocado pit, you may want to try that as well.
Wash the pit, and firmly poke three toothpicks (equally-spaced) into the seed, about two
thirds of the way down toward the flatter end. Use the toothpicks to support the seed over
a glass of water (with the flat end in the water), keep the water clean and up to the top of
the glass so the bottom of the pit is always immersed, and in a few weeks, you’ll have the
beginning of a nice tree. Pot it up when you have some real leaves. (You can also try to
just plant the pit in soil and keep it moist - this takes longer, is less certain, and you’ll miss
the excitement of watching the roots and stem emerge.)
Vegetative Propagation - This is the process of starting a plant from something other than
a seed. Many interesting plants can be started from pieces of fruits and vegetables that you
might otherwise toss into the garbage!
Potatoes are underground stems. Cut an old (if it’s already sprouting, all the better!)
white potato into parts, each containing several “eyes” (buds). Plant each piece in clean
wet soil. Sit back and watch your potato plant take off.
Sweet Potatoes are even more exciting to grow than are white potatoes. These members
of the morning glory family will send off luxuriant long-lasting vines, if you give them a
treatment similar to that described above for avocados!
Next, try sprouting a carrot top. Organic carrots are best for this, but any untreated
carrots with undamaged tops might also work. Cut about half an inch off the top of the
carrot (the part where the greenery was). Set it in a dish with water. You’ll get nice green
ferny growth sprouting from the top, and roots will grow. Just don’t expect to get carrots they’re biennial plants, and you’ve just tricked the plant into its short second year.
The same process described for a carrot also works on the top of a pineapple! But - be
patient here: these bromeliads take their time.
These are just a few possibilities – now that you’ve gotten a taste for growing new plants
from waste materials, experiment! You have nothing to lose but your garbage......