How to get Seed From Grocery Store Fruits and Veggies

The grocery story can be a great way to start a garden on a shoe string budget. Here are some ways to get those fruits and veggies to sprout and give seed.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Your favorite grocery store produce
• zip loc bags
• wet paper towels
• pots and dirt

1. Tomatoes and Peppers - scoop out the seeds, rinse with water to help remove pulp. Place in a glass of water for 1-2 days. This will send the unusable pulp to the top of the glass and the seed to the bottom. Skim off the pulp and place the seed on old newspaper in the sun to dry. Use the germinating technique at the bottom of the page to sprout.
2. All types of potatoes - For the potatoes either poke toothpicks into the sides and hang over a glass of water, water should be 1/2 way up the potato, or wait until ti sprouts on its own. Cut sprout plus one inch of potato and plant in pot or straight into the ground.
3. Avocado - Remove the seed and suspend in water like the potato. Be sure to poke the surface or sprouting could take too long and seed will rot in the water.
4. Pineapples - Cut off the big stem at the top. Pick off the bottom 1/2 inch of leaves and let in sit out on the counter for 24 hours. Then, place the stem into a glass of water to root.
5. Blueberries and Cranberries - There are two ways of doing this. You can either buy the berries fresh and pick out & rinse the seeds then freeze them for 30 days before germinating them on peat moss, or you can buy them already frozen from the store, defrost, pick out the seeds and germinate them on peat moss.
6. Apples - Apple seeds are another seed that needs cold to sprout. If you've had apples in the fridge for a while, the could already be sprouted. If not, remove the seeds, rinse with water, dry, place in fridge for 30 days the sprout in peat moss.
7. Citrus fruits - Remove the seeds, rinse with water to remove all pulp. Dry on newspaper in the sun. Sprout using the bag method.
8. Melons - same as citrus fruits
9. Pomegranate - Chew up the arils and sprout using the bag method.
10. Passion fruit - Wash the arils and be sure to remove all th pulp. Use bag method to sprout.
11. Mints and herbs - After using the leaves, most herbs and mints can be sprouted in water and the planted in dirt right away.
12. BAG METHOD: Put seed in a double thickness of wet paper towel. Seal the bag and place in a warm spot (on top of the fridge works well)

Tips & Warnings

• I compiled this article from my own trial and error, web articles, and tips from my grandmother. Sometimes I'm not sure how to state those resources. Do take the time to visit gardenweb.com for many gardening tips. A member by the name of ara133 tipped me off to the grocery store sprouting idea.