Keep your onion supply high with a simple trick!
This Lesson Plan is part the Home and Nutrition modules of SustainEd Farms' virtual programming.
Background: Regrowing Green Onions
A new era of social distancing can prevent people from visiting the grocery store as often as they may like to. Without replenishing common household ingredients and fresh produce, many will see the nutritional quality and taste of their meals degrade. However, learning to regrow certain vegetables at home -- like green onions -- is a simple way to keep ingredient stocks high in a time of uncertainty.
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to...
Regrow green onions at home
Improve their self-sustenance ability
Academic Vocabulary
scallion /ˈskalyən/ noun. - an onion with long green leaves and a small bulb, essentially synonymous with a green onion
Directions
1. Gather your materials. You will need the following supplies:
At least 1 green onion · a vase or other water container, filled with water · scissors
🧅 Green onion or scallion, which is it? While most people use these terms interchangeably, an expert may tell you that a scallion is a young green onion with a smaller bulb than that of a “true” green onion.
2. Watch the following YouTube video to see a demonstration of how to regrow green onions at home. Then, follow along with the remainder of the lesson.
3. Using your scissors, make a cutting of the onion, leaving a few inches on the rooted part. You can now use the non-root portion for any cooking need you may have. Hold on to the rooted portion.
💭Which part of the green onion do I use to cook? A common question, it turns out. It may surprise you that using both the green and white part of the onion are totally acceptable. The only portion of the onion you want to avoid are wilted leaves and the dangly roots at the bottom.
4. Without submerging the entire cutting, place the rooted portion into your vase filled with water, and set in a sunny location indoors. Check your onion periodically, and you should see new growth in a week at the latest. Change the water out every few days, especially if it begins to look murky. Harvest as needed!
Additional Resources:
Download the PDF version of this lesson plan: