How to Grow Microgreens – 2018

For the past couple of years, I have been growing microgreens to supply us with fresh salad greens during the winter months. I’ve had quite a few readers asking me how to grow microgreens so I decided to shoot a video on the entire process.

But first, what are microgreens? Growing them involves thickly sowing seeds that will be later harvested and eaten as small seedlings. They can be all sorts of herbs and vegetable crops such as basil, parsley, chard, beets, peas, cabbage, sunflowers and kale — just to name a few.

Why grow them? Well, after learning that a research study showed microgreens have anywhere from 4 to 40 TIMES the nutrients that the same plants would have at maturity, I knew I wanted to get in on that! (that number range depends upon on the type of crop you are growing, in case you’re wondering.)

What’s more, those little seedlings are incredibly flavorful. My husband and I primarily use them in salads but they can accompany a stir-fry or pasta, or in many other dishes.

So here is my latest video, which covers how to grow microgreens, from start to finish!

Another question folks often have is this: what’s the difference between sprouts and microgreens? Well, sprouts are seeds that are sprouted in a watery environment, whereas microgreens are grown in soil. You might recall how there have occasionally been health scares associated with eating sprouts; that’s because bacteria can more easily grow in water. And that is why I prefer to err on the side of caution and go with microgreens. They are harvested by snipping their stems just above the soil surface; then I wash them and gently toss them in a salad spinner to remove the rest of the water from the leaves.

At the end of the video, I included some potential sources for microgreens seeds. If you live in the Spokane area, a local source is Northwest Seed & Pet. Online suppliers include SproutPeople, Johnny’s Selected Seeds, Eden Brothers and High Mowing Organic Seeds. I have purchased bulk microgreens seeds from SproutPeople and been very happy with them. While I haven’t purchased microgreens seeds from the others listed, I have purchased regular seeds from both Johnny’s and High Mowing and am happy to recommend them. I’m not familiar with Eden Brothers but knew they sold microgreens seeds so felt I should include them. I’m sure there are more sources, but this gives you a starting point. As I mentioned in the video, I think it’s important to choose organic seeds.

As always, if you have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at Susan@susansinthegarden.com.