Regrow Vegetables From Kitchen Scraps: What Works
Regrow ginger, turmeric, lemongrass and sweet potato from grocery-store pieces: what to buy, what to expect, and where our sources say it can fail.
You can regrow ginger, turmeric, lemongrass and sweet potato from grocery-store pieces, but each one comes with a caveat our sources spell out. Ginger and turmeric are grown from rhizome pieces, lemongrass from a stalk that still has its base, and sweet potato from sprouts called slips. None of them is grown from seed. A store-bought piece is a cheap way to try the plant, not a guaranteed start.
What works for each
| Plant | What you plant | What can go wrong | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ginger | A plump rhizome piece with buds, soaked overnight and callused | Shriveled, soft or moldy pieces are a poor start | Ginger from store-bought ginger |
| Turmeric | A piece 1–1½ in. (2.5–4 cm) long with at least one bud | No source mentions grocery turmeric; we cannot say if it was treated | Turmeric from grocery rhizomes |
| Lemongrass | A stalk with enough of its base (root plate) left on | A stalk with no base left may not root | Lemongrass from grocery stalks |
| Sweet potato | A root buried halfway in moist soil, to make slips | Fresh or sprout-inhibited roots may not sprout | Sweet potato slips |
What to expect
Sweet potato is the only one with a stated timeline: Penn State gives six to eight weeks to slips, and three to five slips per root. For the other three, our sources give no sprouting or rooting time, and we will not invent one. Warmth and even moisture are what the sources stress. The ginger page adds one caution: CTAHR says infected seed pieces produce infected plants, so do not replant pieces from a plant whose leaves yellow and curl.
Be ready for the long wait
Regrowing is the easy part. Ginger needs 8 to 10 months to a full harvest, and turmeric is dug in fall when the leaves dry out and wilt. Sweet potato slips go out three to four weeks after your last frost and the roots come 90 to 120 days later. Lemongrass is cut when stems reach about ½ in. (1.3 cm) thick, with no day count given.
Where to go next
- Frost where you live? Ginger, turmeric and lemongrass do best in pots: see our guide to vegetables in containers.
- Cook with these plants? See the Asian vegetables collection for ginger, turmeric, lemongrass and more.
- Planning a whole garden of kitchen plants? See the spice garden collection.
- Timing the slips? Our vegetable planting calendar shows how to count back from your last frost.
