Grow A Carrot Top!

Fall is here, but that doesn't mean an end to having fun with gardening! A good way to keep kids (or just yourself) interested in gardening is to have some fun indoor plant projects throughout the year.

One project that people of all ages enjoy is growing a "Carrot Top Plant."

There are 2 ways to go about doing this. One way is using a dish, another way is to create a hanging basket of sorts, and we'll go over both.

Now carrot tops will sprout and grow into bushy plants, but will not grow another carrot - but it's still fun to do, here's how:

Method 1 - In A Dish

1. Cut off the top about 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the crown. If there is any green on your carrot, cut it off

2. Fill a shallow bowl with sand, small pebbles or marbles

3. Push the carrot top into the sand, pebbles, or marbles so that the carrot end will be in the water, and fill the bowl with lukewarm water

4. Place the bowl near a sunny window and in a few days you will see the fern-like sprouts of the carrot

5. Keep the water topped off so that the carrot doesn't dry out

6. Your carrot plant will last until it out grows it's container. It also makes a fun table decoration


Method 2 - Make A Hanging Basket

1. Cut off the top about 2 inches (5.1 cm) from the crown. If there is any green on your carrot, cut it off

2. Carefully hollow out the cut end of the carrot about 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) creating a "bowl" and leaving the other 1/2 inch solid that is near the carrot top

3. Tie a string around base of the carrot so you can hang it near a sunny window, tie the string so that the "bowl you have created is facing upwards

4. Once hanging near a sunny window, fill the "bowl" you hollowed out with water

5. Always keep the bowl full of water

6. In a few days you will see the top growing again

7. It will continue to grow as long as you want to let it grow. Now you have a hanging carrot plant!


For other tips and fun gardening ideas - visit www.weekendgardener.net