Don’t throw away your green onions; replant them.
February 11th, 2008
Inspired by Kristin’s post on what you can do with leftover parmesan rinds, I wanted to share my recently acquired tip about green onions. When you finish slicing off the green parts and the top of the white parts for soups, bread or whatever else you use them for, hang on to to an inch or so of the bulbs at the end. Placed in a small cup of water on a sunny windowsill, the onions will shoot up again and keep you well stocked through several re-growings. I just clip bits as I need them, and once spring comes, I’ll get a little dirt and plant the bulbs.
February 11th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
this made my day. I am constantly buying green onions so LOVE the thought of growing my own. one thing I can’t picture, though–how do you start the little bulbs out? should they be only partially covered with water with a little sticking out above the surface? or fully submerged? and do you just stand them against the sides of the cup until they grow tall enough to be bound together and stand up on their own? or what?
February 11th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Hi Jenny -
I actually just left the rubber band that came around the bulbs on, and they sat on their side, so that the little roots were all covered with water. Once they got to a certain height, I started leaning the against the window to stand them up. They go from unbalanced to top-heavy, so I find that the leaning works well - but I think they would grow sideways as well.
Thanks for your comments!
February 11th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
cool. thanks!
February 12th, 2008 at 8:45 am
I was so tickled to read this post — what a fantastic idea! We use scallions constantly and I love the idea of planting them in the garden this spring. I cooked with some last night and then plopped the bulbs into a little glass of water on a sunny windowsill…can’t wait to see them grow. Thanks for the tip!
February 12th, 2008 at 9:31 am
Fantastic - tks for sharing!
February 12th, 2008 at 10:39 am
Awesome tip . . . thanks! I need more widow space.
February 12th, 2008 at 11:31 am
I did not know that!
Thanks for the tip.
February 12th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
That’s a great tip, thank you. I have a clear plastic toothbrush holder (the cup with the lid that has 4 holes in it). I think, once the onions get some height, this would make an excellent “onion stander upper” on the window sill, yes? When short, you can use the holed lid, only, in a tea cup or shallow dish, and if they are tall, use the toothbrush holder cup itself.
February 12th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
This is so helpful, since I always wind up having to buy way more green onions than I need (I never use up the whole rubber-banded bunch before some of them go bad). This way I can grow just what I need and they will always be fresh.
Thanks!
February 12th, 2008 at 4:21 pm
That is awesome, thank you. I have four green onion sprouts in the fridge right now and I just snipped off the ends. If you want them to stand upright, submerging them in a little water in a drinking glass instead of bowl works.
February 12th, 2008 at 7:36 pm
Just wanted to add my two cents worth. Don’t forget to rinse the roots and change the water every other day or so. (You’ll smell it if you’ve waited to long.) From a big fan of green onions.
February 12th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Kate - As long as there is enough air circulating, the toothbrush holder will work great.
Jules - thanks for your two cents - yes, the water will go off after a while, so being sure to change it is the best way to ensure tasty onions.
Glad everyone is finding this so helpful! I’m about to eat my first batch tonight, so it’s certainly working out for me!
February 13th, 2008 at 9:00 am
great idea claire! awesome post and i’m going to use your suggestion.
February 13th, 2008 at 9:47 am
What a great tip! I’m going to have to try this, I’ve got a great big sunny window in my kitchen that is perfect for this. Thanks!
February 13th, 2008 at 9:48 am
If you’re having trouble selecting a dish to grow them in, try a shot glass or “shooter”. Shooters are perfect for growing green onions.
February 15th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
Thanks for the tip. I tried it out yesterday and by this afternoon they have grown 1/3 inch already!
February 18th, 2008 at 10:46 am
[…] Do you, like me, use green onions often? If you do, check out this excellent tip I saw last week over at Cookthink — you can save your green onion bulbs and keep them growing in a glass of water! […]
February 22nd, 2008 at 9:58 am
[…] In keeping with our recent waste not, want not theme, a note to add to yesterday’s root source on flat-leaf parsley: the leaves are pretty and useful, but their often discarded stems are more flavorful and, some say, nutritious. […]
June 25th, 2008 at 4:55 am
this will come in handy because of the tremendous increase in PRICE of green onions, even here in Florida. Thanks very, very much!
June 27th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
[…] I am submitting this sesame chicken recipe to Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by Kalyn’s Kitchen. This blog event invites bloggers to write about a vegetable, herb, or flower. My sesame chicken recipe includes green onions, which are my absolute favorite. I LOVE that you can actually use your leftover bulbs to grow even more green onions. […]
July 12th, 2008 at 5:47 am
[…] An editorial in yesterday’s NYT touched on a subject that’s been getting more attention lately: how much food we waste. The authors linked to a fascinating article in the Guardian, listing different techniques to avoid wasting food: […]
August 29th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
For those of you who end up wasting the greens, they freeze beautifully.
September 21st, 2008 at 10:03 am
[…] Plannedfors not only leverage your time, they also save you money by helping you cut down on food waste. Instead of letting those green onions languish in the vegetable crisper, you’ll be able to plan a use for all of them when you buy them. […]
October 3rd, 2008 at 3:20 pm
[…] 4 Here at Cookthink, we advocate saving cheese rinds, cooking up a pot of scrap soup and growing green onions on your countertop. […]
November 26th, 2008 at 10:53 am
I put my rootstubs into a flowerpot right away, cover them with a humidity dome (clear plastic container or plastic bag), and spray them with water every day. When they have about an inch of growth, I take off the humidity dome.
December 13th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
This is a great idea! Question: when you plant them in the spring, can you continue to clip them like you would when they grow in a regular cup of water? Do you have to eventually pull them up?
February 13th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Where can I buy some green onions to plant? Thanks
February 13th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Where can I buy some green onions, to plant? Thanks
February 15th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
This is great. I just posted about regrowing onions:
http://red-icculus.com/?p=173
March 11th, 2009 at 1:01 am
What a brilliant idea! I loooooove scallions and I by them often because I only cook for 1 and unfortunately end up letting them go bad & throwing them away. Now I can plant them. Awesome!
March 20th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
I put them in a tall, clear vase so you don’t have to worry about leaning the greens against the window or anything. =)
March 21st, 2009 at 7:06 pm
I am going to grow my own onion greens, too. This is terrific information; thank you! I will stand mine in a little milk glass I got at the Salvation Army. I was going to paint it with PEBEO and stand hat pins in it, but I like this idea better!
March 24th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
I have a question, how do I stop the spreading of the onion chives I planted, now they are everywhere. Does something kill them or stop them from popping out everywhere? Help! Thanks Donna White
March 27th, 2009 at 4:02 pm
how long till they sprout?
April 9th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
YAY, Google! Can’t get enough green onions this Spring, so was pleased to find this. After reading all the posts, I just MAY have found the perfect container for my sunny, but narrow, kitchen window ledge…..crystal champagne flutes!! Their prisms are beautiful in the sunlight. Can’t wait to see if this works!
April 20th, 2009 at 9:26 am
[…] A year later, the whole room is a mess. We did a big fridge purge at the end of fall, but the winter took its toll. The freezer’s overstuffed, one crisper has the tell-tale shriveled green onions, and we regularly ransack the utensil drawers for the can opener. We’re due for a major top-to-bottom clean, and the Cure gives us some support. […]
May 15th, 2009 at 1:34 am
You gardeners are a hoot. I have queries too. I’ll b back
May 19th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Hi everyone,
I plant the green onion roots left over from cooking into potted dirt and about half of them will sprout, the other ones however shrivel up and turn into mush. Lately it’s been pretty hot and even some of the sprouted ones turned soft and wilted. My question for you folks is how much water should I give them? Because I’ve read from many discussion boards that say do not give them too much water, one even said watering once a week will suffice, but isn’t planting them in water the same thing as giving them a lot of water? The pots I’m using right now don’t drain through the bottom, the idea being it helps retain the water a little better since the soil is so loose it’d dry up if I keep it drained. Should I change all of these? Also, any tips on spacing would be extremely helpful too… in an 8″ diameter pot I have 5 arranged in a pentagon with a 6th plant in the middle, am I crowding them too much? Appreciate your time in reading this, and I hope you pros can give me some tips. Thanks!
May 20th, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Thank you sooo much! I, too, am thrilled with this information!!
I am always using green onions (i cook alot & make alot of salads) and have to go to the market constantly for them, and the price is always changing! This is a great ~
May 24th, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Hi! I’ve been growing green onions from old dry onions (same method), and it works just as well!
Here is how it happened: I had some organic onions hanging in their fishnet bag in my kitchen for a week or so, and then a couple of them started sprouting. I put them in a bowl of water on a window sill and the sprouts grew long and strong in a matter of days!
An additional bonus: if you have a garden, in which you have slugs and other bugs attacking your plants, don’t throw away the onion wanter when you change it - instead, spray it on your plants (you may wish to steep a clove of garlic in your onion glass/bowl for extra strength).
June 10th, 2009 at 7:09 pm
Works like a charm, except I skipped the water bowl/cup and just stuck the roots right into the soil of my window planter as it was easier to changing the water everyday, plus the soil holds the water well. I was amazed, it grew 3/8″ in per day and was fully grown in about 20 days. I went to the grocery store and bought 3 more onion sets and did the same thing. Now I actually have more green onions growing on my balcony window planter than I actually eat! This is great, I think I’m stocked all spring, summer and hopefully fall. I’ve already cut some of my first crop, leaving the roots in the soil still and they just keep regrowing! awesome.
June 13th, 2009 at 2:38 am
How out of touch have we humans become with the nature that birthed us? Is this really that much of a revelation? You mean, they don’t just make them at the onion factory?
June 21st, 2009 at 10:23 am
I’ve been doing this for years…I just buy a small bunch at the store, chop the greens and a bit of white, and stand the ends in a baby food jar filled with water. they grow quite quickly! i tried planting in soil once, and the results were not as good, nor did they last as long.
for those of you who have more than you need…I chop all that I can from the stalks and store in a freezer bag in the freezer. I can use as much or as little as I want with absolutely none gone to waste.
June 24th, 2009 at 4:19 am
If you don’t have a kitchen window, can you grow them in the fridge?
July 12th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
I purchased green onions and started to grow them on my countertop. I had snipped about half the green part off (for cooking). They are all turning yellow and wilting on the tips of the green part. What am I doing wrong? Do I need to start from the bulbs without any green?
July 29th, 2009 at 2:11 am
I had a regular onion that was 1/2 used and starting to sprout green tips. I decided to plant it just to see what would happen. To my surprise I got 3 new onions out of it. It only took about 3-4 weeks. Crazy.