Check the menu of a fine restaurant or the produce section of a specialty grocery store, and you’re likely to spy microgreens: tiny, delicate greens that add color, texture and taste to a wide range of foods as a garnish or ingredient.
Big on nutrition and taste, microgreens might be expensive to purchase. But they can also be grown cost-effectively at residence, in a tiny house and with easy supplies. If you have a sunny windowsill, a shallow container, some potting mix and suitable seeds, you have bought all the essentials for growing your own microgreens. This is a great crop for city gardeners who are limited to a windowsill, balcony or fire escape.
Additionally known as „vegetable confetti,“ microgreens are sometimes confused with sprouts — germinated seeds that are eaten root, seed and shoot. Microgreens, nonetheless, embody a wide range of edible immature greens, harvested with scissors less than a month after germination, when the plants are up to 2 inches tall. The stem, cotyledons (or seed leaves) and first set of true leaves are all edible.
Which seeds work finest?
Salad greens, leafy vegetables, herbs and even edible flowers could be grown as microgreens, although some varieties are better suited than others. Newcomers usually start by rising one type of seed, resembling broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, mustard, chia, sunflower or buckwheat — among the easiest-to-grow varieties of microgreens — in a single container. (You can easily grow totally different seeds in several containers, and blend your microgreens after harvesting.)
You can even find seeds for salad mixes and specially chosen microgreen mixes that mix greens with similar growth rates, suitable flavors and beautiful coloring together with reds, purples and greens. Since they were created with grower success in mind, they’re additionally a sensible choice for beginners.
In case your climate is suitable, microgreens will be even be grown outdoors within the backyard, under shade. Like all fragile seedlings, you will need to protect them from weather extremes and drying winds, not to point out hungry backyard pests.
Where do I start?
Start with a warm, sunny windowsill (direct sunlight from a south-going through window is ideal) and a small, clean container. Plastic take-out dishes and disposable pie plates work well, as do clear fruit or salad boxes. If your chosen container doesn’t have constructed-in drainage, poke just a few drainage holes within the bottom. Then, prepare to plant:
Steps
Read the seed packet to see if there are any particular instructions.
Cover the bottom of the container with an inch or two of moistened potting soil or mix. Flatten and level it with your hand or a small piece of cardboard, taking care not to over-compress the soil.
Scatter seeds evenly on high of the soil. Press gently into the soil using your hand or the cardboard.
Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil. Dampen the surface with a mister. When you prefer, you possibly can skip this step and instead cover the container with a transparent lid or plastic wrap till the seeds are sprouted.
While waiting for sprouts to look, usually within three to seven days, use the mister once or twice daily to keep the soil moist however not wet.
Once seeds have sprouted, remove the cover (when you’ve used one) and continue to mist a couple of times a day.
Microgreens need about 4 hours daily of direct sunlight to thrive. In winter months, some may have even more. Leggy, pale greens are a sign of not sufficient sunlight. Light needs will also be satisfied with a grow light.