Microgreens Save the World

Okay, maybe a little dramatic of a title for this post, but the truth is, microgreens are pretty amazing.  I was turned onto them by an article that landed on my desktop from WebMD, a source that I typically trust for accurate medical information.  I was fascinated by the intense nutrient concentration in these tiny little vegetables and set out to learn more, ultimately deciding to try my hand at growing them.

Freshly harvested cabbage and salad mix microgreens

Microgreens are plants that are harvested in their very early stages of growth, when they are about 1-3 inches tall.   They exist in the world somewhere between sprouts and baby greens.  Unlike sprouts, they are allowed to root, either in dirt or a hydroponic growing medium (my preference), then are cut just above the root for harvest.  They are more intensely flavored than mature greens and often very bright and colorful.  And best of all?  They pack anywhere between four and forty (yes, forty) times the nutrients of their mature counterparts.  For those of you skeptics out there who, like me, always demand proof of outrageous claims before believing them, these numbers came from a bonafide scientific study recently published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.  Check out the WebMD article for a people friendly overview of their results.

Ready for harvest

So in addition to all of this nutritional mumbo, microgreens just TASTE GOOD. Rick loves them, and would be happy to put a handful on top of pretty much everything he eats, cereal and ice cream aside.  We eat them in place of other greens in our salads and as a garnish on just about anything else.

"Planting" the microgreens

Microgreens are incredibly easy to grow, and supplies are inexpensive. I get mine from growingmicrogreens.com. I started with their hydroponic starter kit, which gave me all of the materials I needed and enough seeds to last for months. I also purchased a four tiered miniature greenhouse and have placed everything on my enclosed porch. It's a great setup, but frankly the greenhouse isn't necessary if you just have somewhere you can set the tray(s) so they get some sunlight. I usually start a new tray or two about twice a week, so I always have some in process and some to harvest from.

A sea of basil microgreens.  Makes fabulous pesto.