Everything you need to know to grow your own sustainable lettuce and herbs using common kitchen items.
On November 7, we at Maple Leaf Foods are celebrating our third annual Little Changes Day, which marks our carbon neutral anniversary and acts as a way to share the little ways to change our daily lives with environmentally friendly habits that turn into lifelong routines.
It’s safe to say that we’re all on our own purposeful journeys to finding sustainable solutions to combat the growing issues of climate change. According to a recent Angus Reid survey, nearly all Canadians care about protecting Mother Earth and 84% agree that working together is important to changing the tide of environmental damage, but many don’t know where to start.
This year, we’ve partnered once again with Earth Rangers to create the Grow Your Own Greens Challenge! The challenge teaches the importance of sustainable farming practices, through simple, eco-friendly at-home activities.
Growing your own greens is a fun way for you and your family to Raise the Good in Food and make daily cooking a little bit more sustainable. Challenging your family to expand their sustainability horizons by growing greens using kitchen scraps is a great way to work as a team and understand the importance of sustainable farming practices.
How to grow your own greens
Here’s what you’ll need:
- A lettuce core cut 5-7cm from the bottom
- A few 10-15cm herb stems (we recommend basil, mint, and oregano!)
- A clean glass jar or container for herbs or a shallow bowl for lettuce
- Toothpicks
- Water
- A sunny spot
Step 1: Regrow your own produce from kitchen scraps
For the lettuce: Insert four toothpicks in the bottom of the lettuce core. Place the lettuce core into the container with the toothpicks holding the lettuce in place.
If you’re using herbs: Place each herb stem into a glass jar or container that will allow it to stand with support.
Friendly tip: We recommend using a plastic container or glass jar that may otherwise go into the recycling bin. This is a great way to use what we have around us to have an even bigger sustainable impact on our homes.
Step 2: Fill the container with water
For the lettuce: Add just enough water to the container so that the water is covering the bottom third of the lettuce.
If you’re using herbs: Fill the container nearly to the top, but don’t let the leaves of the herb become submerged.
Step 3: Find a sunny spot
Place your lettuce or herbs in a sunny spot – we recommend a windowsill in the kitchen to keep your new veggies top of mind while cooking.
Check on your indoor planters each day to see their growth and fill the container with more water when needed. To keep it fresh, completely empty the container and replace the water once a week.
Step 4: Watch your plant grow
Within a few days, you’ll start to see brand new leaves sprouting from the center of the lettuce core. In 10-12 days, you’ll have enough growth on your new head of lettuce to make a fresh salad or add an extra crunch to a sandwich.
For the herb lovers, after a few weeks you’ll start to see roots growing in the water of the container. Once you can see the roots of your herb, you can start picking off leaves to add flavour or garnish any dish.
After you use all your fresh lettuce or pick all the leaves off your herbs, you can regrow it again using the same instructions.
Want to take your indoor farm a step further? Try planting your lettuce and herbs in flowerpots filled with potting soil – this will give the plants some nutrients, which makes them more nutritious to eat!
Keep your sustainable goals going
We hope you join us in this purposeful journey to protect our planet and food supply for generations to come. Change can start from something as small as growing lettuce or herbs in your kitchen, to the solutions we at Maple Leaf Foods are delivering on a much larger scale, such as regenerative agriculture practices within our supply chain to support our growers.
Check out the Earth Rangers app to find more sustainable tips, tricks, and challenges to be more sustainable every day.
