There’s just nothing better than eating fresh greens and veggies that were grown right in your backyard, from the labor of your own hard work. If you are a vegetable gardener, you have likely been harvesting some colorful veggies for quite some time by this point in the growing season. Sadly though, we are coming towards the end of summer and our gardens are getting tired and we will begin the process of cleaning up for next seasons crops. Just because we are nearing the end of our growing season though, doesn’t mean we can’t still grow fresh greens for our salads and sandwiches. Growing your own fresh sprouts is an easy way to keep some green in your home and diet. It’s also a fun project for the kids to watch grow.
What you will need for this project is a large mason jar with a lid (you will only need the metal ring), a sheet of plastic needle canvas, any variety of sprouting seeds that you prefer and water. Some good options for sprouting are alfalfa, broccoli, beans, radish, sunflower and so many more. Basically, if it takes only a few days to germinate and grow, it will be a good option for sprouts. The first thing you will want to do is trace a circle onto the needle canvas using your lid as a pattern. Cut the circle out and put the needle canvas inside the metal ring, this will be what you use to rinse and drain your sprouts on a daily basis.
Once you have your jar ready, put two heaping tablespoons of seed in your jar and soak them in water for several hours, roughly 2-4 is a good time frame. Once they have soaked, drain the water from the seeds and set them in some bright light to grow. Every day from then on, you will want to rinse and drain twice a day, removing as much water as possible. Keeping a routine makes it easy to remember – rinse in the morning while making morning coffee and rinse in the evening while making supper. This prevents any possible e coli issues. You will start to see some green popping up in no time. Around the 7 day mark, your sprouts should be ready for eating. However, a person can eat their sprouts at any point of germination depending on their preference of taste and flavor. Keep in mind, they will keep the longest if you store them in the fridge.
Growing sprouts can be an ongoing project that you can have even throughout the winter months. It’s also a great project to keep the kids busy and let them watch the green sprouts grow and change daily. You would be amazed how quickly they grow and how delicious they are!
