Re: Microgreens Gardening

yolos 11/10/2015, 9:54 am

This is day 5. Looks like the daikon (on left) did the best. Buckwheat (in the middle) either was not seeded enough or some seeds did not sprout because it is not as thick as the videos show. The snap peas did the worst, maybe because they were so heavily seeded. I was trying two different varieties. One variety finally sprouted and the second variety just molded. I had to spoon them out of the tray and compost them.
Microgreens Gardening - Page 5 Microg14

I put the buckwheat under the counter for light yesterday but it did not green up as fast as the radish did. Another problem with the buckwheat was the seed hulls did not come off the seedling. I had to manually pull most of the seed hulls off. I just moved them all outside on my porch to try to catch some sun if it ever comes out. It is predicted to make a showing about 1pm today.

**trolleydriver** 11/10/2015, 10:58 am

yolos ... did you soak the pea seeds in water before planting them in soil? With sunflower seeds I soaked them until they started to sprout and then transferred them to soil.

yolos 11/10/2015, 12:11 pm

trolleydriver wrote:yolos ... did you soak the pea seeds in water before planting them in soil? With sunflower seeds I soaked them until they started to sprout and then transferred them to soil.

Yes I soaked the pea seeds for about 24 hours. They had not sprouted when I planted them. I planted two varieties in the same tray (one on each end of the tray). I variety sprouted about 75% and the second variety did not sprout and molded. Both varieties were 2014 or 2015 seeds. I did not soak my buckwheat or radish.

This would be a great winter growing method for those who like smoothies.

**trolleydriver** 11/11/2015, 10:22 am

The sunflower microgreens in experiment #4 continue to grow. This photo was taken last week. This morning I harvested a bunch that went into a green smoothie.

Microgreens Gardening - Page 5 DSCN9412_zpsgfjpynlc

Microgreens Gardening - Page 5 DSCN9412_zpsgfjpynlc

yolos 11/11/2015, 12:28 pm

TD, are you covering your seeds with soil or just laying the seeds on top of the soil. I covered my seeds with soil. When the radish seeds germinated, they pushed the soil up as they germinated. I never saw that before. A whole lot of soil on top of the germinated seeds being pushed up above the sprouts. Must be because they were so heavily seeded or wrong type soil.

**trolleydriver** 11/11/2015, 2:01 pm

yolos ... If I recall correctly I put a very thin layer of soil on top of the sunflower seeds. I don;t think it is necessary for some other seeds.

yolos 11/15/2015, 11:11 pm

It has been 10 days since I first started this experiment. Except for 1/2 of the pea microgreens that did not sprout, everything is working and tasting nicely.
Microgreens Gardening - Page 5 Microg11

**sanderson** 11/16/2015, 4:11 am

Looks good, Yolos.

**AtlantaMarie** 11/16/2015, 7:37 am

**trolleydriver** 11/16/2015, 8:35 am

+2

My sunflower microgreens are just about done. I need to start new batches of radish, sunflower, etc. microgreens. This is so easy and they taste really good.

yolos 11/17/2015, 10:11 am

Here is my final harvest of microgreens that were seeded 11/5. 1 tray of daikon radish on the left, pea shoots in the middle (1/2 tray), and buckwheat on the left.
Microgreens Gardening - Page 5 Microg12

I had to harvest everything today in order to start new trays that will hopefully be ready for pre-thanksgiving feast with family. I will include the new planting of microgreens in a salad I will be making with all my lettuce from the SFG (unless the lettuce leaves freeze this weekend).

**trolleydriver** 11/17/2015, 11:50 am

Well done yolos ... looks great. You did very well.

I just started a batch of alfalfa microgreens.

CapeCoddess 11/17/2015, 12:37 pm

Wow! Still lovin' this thread!
hungry

CC

**AtlantaMarie** 11/18/2015, 9:09 am

Okay, I finally took the plunge. Got some sunflower seeds soaking a couple of nights ago. Last night, they were already popping out.

I'm going to try it just using paper towels. I'll let you know how it goes....

yolos 11/18/2015, 9:45 am

AtlantaMarie wrote:Okay, I finally took the plunge. Got some sunflower seeds soaking a couple of nights ago. Last night, they were already popping out.

I'm going to try it just using paper towels. I'll let you know how it goes....

Be aware that my research says that certain microgreens do much better planted in soil as opposed to other medium. These microgreens prefer soil - Sunflower, buckwheat, pea, cilantro, beet. I think the internet site said they could be grown in something other than soil but they just do better in soil type mix.

**trolleydriver** 11/18/2015, 12:26 pm

AM ... I agree with yolos about planting sunflower microgreens in soil. I use Mel's Mix for my soil.

**AtlantaMarie** 11/18/2015, 2:16 pm

Sigh..... okay....... But I'm gonna try the paper towel for this batch anyway! Want to see what happens. I'm just really looking to get 1st set of true leaves & green. They'll be going in my smoothies & salads.

Thanks for the advice!

**trolleydriver** 11/18/2015, 3:03 pm

AM ... you could try putting another piece of paper towel on top of the seeds and keep it damp. Maybe try that on half of them to see if it makes any difference. It's OK to experiment with different methods. I also keep them in a dark place or covered from the light for a couple or more days.

BTW I often harvest my microgreens before the first set of true leaves come out. It seems that sunflowers have to do a lot of growing before those true leaves emerge. So I think it is OK to harvest between the time of the cotyledons and the true leaves.

**AtlantaMarie** 11/18/2015, 3:42 pm

TD, yeah, I've got them covered in black. I'll add that other piece of paper towel. (Good idea. Thanks.)

And thanks for the growth advice!

I'll let you know what happens...!

yolos 11/18/2015, 8:22 pm

Just got back from running errands and of course could not pass up stopping at Pike's Nursery. Botanical Interest seeds rack had quite a few Micro Greens. So I couldn't help it, I had to purchase some to try out.

Upland Cress (10 grams for 3.49)
Red Winter Kale (10 grams for 3.49)
Peas (50 grams for 2.99)
Salad Mix (actually Sprout seeds but think they will work fine) 30 grams for 3.99
Broccoli (actually Sprout seeds but ditto) 20 grams for 4.99

Once I figure out which ones I like and which ones grow easy, I will then try locating a cheaper place to purchase them. So far I have used seeds that I already had on hand. This is my first purchase for microgreen growing.

Marc Iverson 11/19/2015, 12:27 am

If you have a place nearby that sells grains and such out of bulk containers, that will be a much cheaper way to get seeds.

yolos 11/19/2015, 12:44 am

Marc - I do have an old feed and seed store about 30 minute drive but they do not stock much this time of year. I did get about 2 lbs of daikon radish from them two years ago to use as a cover crop to help break up the clay under my beds so I have a boat load of daikon radish seeds. I also harvested buckwheat seeds from my garden so I now have a free source of buckwheat. I just wanted to try a small amount of different types of seeds to see how they taste and how they grow before I purchase a large amount.

yolos 11/29/2015, 8:23 pm

I have found a new hobby that is satisfying and good eating and fits in with gardening very well. Thanks TD. I have already harvested and eaten two daikon radish trays, two buckwheat trays, and one pea tray of microgreens. I have three trays that are growing and almost ready to eat. The kale is on the left, upland cress in the middle, and peas on the right.
Microgreens Gardening - Page 5 Microg13

So far, the most satisfying tasting microgreens are the daikon radish. The little microgreens taste just like a radish. I still want to try the black oil sunflower seeds but don't want to buy bulk until I can experiment with them.

**Scorpio Rising** 11/29/2015, 9:19 pm

Nice, yolos! And nice display! Did you paint the bird in the background?

**trolleydriver** 11/29/2015, 9:53 pm

That's great yolos. I agree with you concerning the daikon radish ... delicious.

Mrs TD informed me today that I will need to find another location for my microgreens. The reason is that she is starting to put up the Christmas decorations and needs the space.

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