Growing Romaine Lettuce from Kitchen Scraps

A must try windowsill science experiment for kids: Growing Romaine Lettuce from Kitchen Scraps in step by step photographs.

Let’s get our kids learning and growing, not just today, EVERYDAY!!!! I just have to say that I am blown away at the creative and writing talents of our guest writers in the Kids in the Garden; Learning and Growing.

Betsy Finn is no exception. She is a master photographer, nature enthusiast, and amazing mom. Her blog, BPhotoArt.com, combines it all, creating a swoon worthy, inspirational read.

She is here today to share with you a simple, but extremely effective science project to do with your children: Growing Romaine Lettuce from Kitchen Scraps. Grab your since journals and record the results. I know we will be doing this very soon! ~Amanda

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Growing Romaine Lettuce from Kitchen Scraps

By Betsy Finn

Did you know that the romaine lettuce core you add to your compost pile is actually capable of growing new leaves?

The process is pretty simple, and ultimately, you can transplant these “new” plants to your garden once the weather permits.  My toddler has been really excited to watch what would have become compost bring new growth and life.  And, secretly, I think he enjoys the prospect of more lettuce to eat.

So, how does this work?  In a nutshell, the next time you make a salad, chop off the romaine lettuce core so that a couple inches remain. Then, you place it in water — and wait for it to grow.

 I’m going to share a few tips with you that we’ve learned while having a kitchen windowsill full of romaine lettuce cores.

Step-By-Step Instructions for how to grow romaine lettuce from scraps

1. *ADULTS*, cut romaine lettuce core off, leaving about 2 inches.

2. Break a toothpick into thirds, and insert into bottom of core, forming a tripod.

3. Place core into jar or container (if it won’t fit, you can break off some outside stems).

4. Fill with enough water to cover the lettuce core by about a half inch.

5. Place in windowsill.

6. Water the romaine lettuce as needed (replacing completely if water turns colored).

Once roots form, transplant into your garden (or into potting soil). Wait for your Romaine lettuce to grow large enough to eat!

I know, it sounds really simple, and you may be skeptical about it working. I know I was. I mean, getting the whole project started takes less than five minutes (maybe longer if your kids participate). But I’ve shared this technique with friends and they were also able to successfully grow romaine lettuce from a core in their outdoor garden.  

To show you how quickly the lettuce starts to grow new leaves, the images accompanying this post have lettuce in three stages of growth: just cut, 1 week old, and 2 week old cores.

Can you regrow romaine lettuce from the stump?

Having lettuce cores at different stages of growth has been a nice teaching tool — it’s really easy to remind a toddler what the lettuce used to look like when you have a freshly cut core sitting alongside the “baby lettuce” that’s been growing for a few weeks.

So, next time you get out some lettuce to make salad, make sure to save the core! You can include your kids in this indoor gardening project, and it’s not much work so far as cleanup goes. If your kids are anything like my son, you will have many requests to see how much the “baby lettuce” has grown over the course of a week.

Want to see what else we’ve been doing since our garden stopped growing things last fall?

Here are some more articles from Betsy that you may like:

Looking at Katydids and Praying Mantises

Watching Wildlife with Binoculars

Learning About Weather Phenomena

About Betsy Finn – Betsy is a photographer, outdoors enthusiast, and mother. She lives in Michigan with her husband, (soon-to-be-two) boys, and two cats. Homesteading and gardening experiments are right up Betsy’s alley — last year, the whole family assembled four 4×8 garden beds, put dirt in and plant over 200 seeds and seedlings that had been started indoors.  While the deer stole most of their tomatoes, there was an abundance of squash, lettuce, carrots, and other delicious produce to be enjoyed by all.  Betsy blogs at BPhotoArt.com.

For more gardening articles here at the Educators’ Spin On It, we recommend;

Best Herbs to Grow with Kids

Best Flowers to Grow with Kids

Best Vegetables to Grow with Kids

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