Before We Begin Growing

The course is about to get very interesting and I hope you are all excited to get started. Upon paying for this course, LED grow lights and a Microgreens grow kit were shipped to you. These are to be considered your course materials, in this course I will be using the exact same materials as you, the student, in hopes that this reduces any confusion around results. You may have not yet received your course materials and it is fine to proceed through the course while you wait, but please come back to any part of growing and harvesting after you get your supplies to ensure you follow the course correctly. The materials make this course very unique, you are not provided a quick start guide of any sort leaving you to source the materials needed to grow, but rather you are provided with everything you need to grow Microgreens successfully.

The Best Methods of Growing

This may come as a surprise but, this course will not show you the very best way to grow Microgreens. There are many methods of growing Microgreens and we will cover a few basic methods. You will learn simple practical methods that work well, to gain a certain level confidence in exploring different techniques, soils, seed densities, light cycles and grow methods in general. In most cases growing a tray of Microgreens will cost ~$2.00 or less and they typically take 10 days from seed to harvest, making Microgreens on of the easiest crops to experiment with. Throwing out a tray that cost $2 in supplies is well worth it if you learned from the experience. There is no perfect method and you are strongly encouraged to experiment and find what works for you, but before experimenting please follow the course lectures closely and do exactly what is shown. This will make troubleshooting much easier if you do encounter any issues.

Microgreens Terminology

There are many terms used when growing Microgreens. Before we get started it would be good to have a good understanding of some of these terms.

• Stacking: When growing Microgreens, stacking is a common term. Most Microgreens benefit greatly by having a weight applied to the seeds during germination. This achieved by placing a tray with a weight right on top of the freshly planted Microgreens. Commonly a weight of some sort is placed in the top tray to apply an even pressure to the seeds in the trays below, I prefer to use what I call the cap tray method. The cap tray is a tray of Microgreens that either grow better when not being stacked or grow just fine without the weight (Amaranth, Arugula, some mixes, most brassicas, and many herbs). The trays remain stacked until most of the seeds have germinated and typically begin to lift the trays above, then they are un-stacked and introduced directly to light or in some cases have a black out dome placed over them for another day or so.
• Bottom Watering: Bottom watering is simply watering the Microgreens from below. This is done with two trays, one with holes placed into a tray without holes. The Microgreens are grown in the tray with holes and when it's time to water the tray is lifted and water is placed in the tray without holes. There are reasons to top water and to bottom water depending on the crop. Many Microgreens are very fragile and watering from above will knock them over, ruining the crop. Bottom watering also keeps the Microgreens themselves dry, making it easier to harvest and brush off small seed hulls. Some Microgreens do better if top watered and there are good reasons for this as well. Sunflower is a crop that does especially well if top watered because this allows them to get a brief wash each day and helps to promote them to shed the seed hull.
• Soaking: Soaking quite simply refers to placing seeds in water for a set amount of time. Most seeds do not need to be soaked and will not benefit from doing so while others will perform better if soaked. Peas are a seed that performs better when soaked, germination rates are more consistent and growth is a little faster. The amount of time to soak seeds varies per crop, peas do great with a 3 to 6 hour soak while Sunflower is typically soaked for a couple days with rinse cycles every 8 - 12 hours. Some growers will soak there seeds in a mild solution of H2O2 to sterilize them and prevent mold growth. This can be helpful even when purchasing quality seeds but is not a necessary step if the seeds are coming from a reliable source. Usually I avoid soaking my seeds even if I know there are benefits simply because it is an extra step and the planning required. Some seeds, peas especially will be ruined if soaked for too long, so it is important that your schedule will allow for you to tend to them in time.
• True Leaves: Microgreens are commonly thought of as being harvested before the first true leaves show. The first leaves you see are called the cotyledon leaves, these are shed once a plant grows larger. The cotyledon leaves of a Microgreen are super tender, flavorful and pack a nutritional punch. The first true leaves though, are where the beauty is observed with many Microgreens. Mustard's, Kale and Cilantro Microgreens have beautiful first true leaves and the flavor is not negatively impacted by allowing them to grow a little. A Microgreen that really needs to be harvested before the first true leaves grow much is Sunflower, once the true leaves show on Sunflower the Microgreens quickly turn bitter and you loses that nice nutty flavor they are loved for.