Nature’s Gift to Us
Have you ever looked at a fruit or vegetable as more than just a food source? If you’ve ever seen an onion or potato sprout while sitting on your counter, you’ve gotten a taste of what a single vegetable can do. Take an onion for example. When it reaches the end of its lifespan as an edible food, it begins to grow another plant. If placed in water, roots will grow from its base and shoots will form. When planted, another onion will grow in its place. Every sprouted onion can form 2, 3, even 4 new onions!
Stop to think about the way Nature prepares each living thing for its species survival. A single onion can nourish, protect itself, form new plants to continue its species, and be turned into even more food to harvest.
Learn How
Grow your own onion from sprouts with these step-by-step directions.
- Peel off the skin and begin to peel away the layers. If the layers are still firm, chop and use them for cooking. Discard any mushy or moldy layers so the onion plant does not rot. Maintain as much of the root structure as possible.
- Once you get to the center of the onion, you will see the natural division of shoots. More than likely, your onion has grown multiple shoots (3–4) and is ready to be turned into multiple plants.
- Place the individual onion shoots into a small cup of water in a sunny spot. Leave them for 1-2 weeks so they have time to grow roots.
- Once roots have formed, plant the onion sprouts in good, healthy potting soil. Add organic compost to feed the plant. Cover the root and white bulb about 1″, so only the green shoots are sticking out the top. Plant the shoots 3–4″ apart to ensure they have ample room to stretch their roots.
- Give them ample sun and water about once every week unless the soil feels dry. In about 12 weeks (usually in late summer), you will have another healthy onion to harvest.
- The bulb size should be visible above the ground. When the majority of the onion tops turn yellow or brown and fall over, your onion is ready to be harvested. This is a sign that the onion has pulled all of the sugar out of the shoots and all of the moisture it needs out of the roots.
- To harvest, gently tug on the stalks.
Plants are programmed to have everything they need to live, grow, give, and continue on. Human beings are born with the same capacity for life. Begin to recognize these resources within yourself.
