This is the book I bought to learn about how to grow microgreens, available on Amazon.
Why the Sudden Interest in Microgreens?
A few years ago, when my boys were ages 2 and 7, I discovered microgreens. It had been a long winter, and I was aching to be outside. January and February are the months when my family gets a new seed catalog in the mail at least once a week! This may be from my last 17 years of mail ordering seeds and bulbs!
The first time I heard the term, microgreens, was at a “Grow Your Small Market Farm” class my husband Tim and I took at Iowa State University during our days as cut flower growers. I had no interest in microgreens at the time, because I was deeply invested in growing cut flowers. I was always curious about what they were and how to grow them, but never made the time to learn more, until that long, cold winter a few years ago.
I must have seen something about microgreens in one of our seed catalogs, and decided to learn more that winter. It was a fun project that I could do with my 2 year old in one arm, while planting seeds with the other hand, and hopefully, providing my kids a tiny learning experience at the same time

7 Reasons to Grow Your Own Microgreens
1. Microgreens taste great: They give your salads a kick in the pants by adding a little bit of spice but not too much. Radish microgreens, for example, have a kick, but are not nearly as strong as eating an actual radish. I would say they have about 1/3 or less of the spice of the actual full grown radish. The same principle holds true with other plants.
2. Microgreens are super easy to grow: Most of my favorite microgreen varieties will sprout from seed in 7 days or less.
3. Fun and Easy Project to do with the kids: Since the seeds germinate so quickly, and large quantities of seed are broadcasted over the seed tray, kids will enjoy it.
4. Microgreens are packed with nutrients.
5. Microgreens take very little space to grow.
6. Microgreens take very little supplies to grow.
7. Microgreens can be grown year round in your home.
Arugula
The picture below is what full grown arugula looks like. Arugula is a fun one for beginners, because the seeds sprout really quickly and easily. Arugula at this stage is very strong tasting, and sometimes, a little bit too intense in flavor, but if you just eat the little microgreen seedlings, the flavor is subtle, sophisticated, and delicious as a garnish, salad accent, or atop a beautiful panini, burger, or cold cut sandwich!
Arugula seed is really inexpensive, quick to germinate, and very rewarding in terms of flavor when harvested as a microgreen! Click the photo on the right, if you want to get some of your own seed to try.
Kale
Below is a packet of Dwarf Blue Curled Scotch Kale. It sprouts very quickly, so it’s really rewarding to plant these with kids! It’s packed with nutrients, because, well, it’s Kale! It can be harvested as a microgreen, or allowed to get a little bigger for baby salad greens. But let me tell you, even though it is Kale, it tastes so much milder when you harvest it when it’s only 2 or 3 inches tall with cute little baby leaves! I have waited until the leaves are about 1inch by 1inch, and then pinch them at the base of the stem without removing the center of the tiny plant, and gotten several cuttings throughout the summer this way. I suppose letting it get this big, probably makes it less of a microgreen and more of a baby salad green, but regardless, it’s a great addition to salads, and it also holds up in soups…think potato soup with Italian sausage.
To order Dwarf Blue Scotch Kale on Amazon, click the pic above!t
Radish
Radish seeds are super easy to sprout, and they will pop up in a week or less! And these little cuties are purple! Don’t let their cuteness fool you though; they pack a spicy punch in that tiny little seedling, making them perfect for spicing up your burgers and sandwiches! This variety is called Rambo.
Beets
Below are Bull’s Blood Beets! Quite a bit different from what we all normally think of when we think of beets. They are so fresh and colorful, and would be so beautiful and nutritious as a garnish to just about anything! Well, maybe not with cereal.
Mizuna
Japanese Mizuna is another easy to sprout seed that is packed with flavorful punch! Plant these little guys if you are a fan of the spicy mustard flavor of wasabi.
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