going green for spring: seed proofing & micro greens

When I married Trent, a self proclaimed "plant nut", I didn't realize how contagious his enjoyment of green things was. Sometimes I laugh at how life, circumstances, and our willingness to change shape us into something unexpected! For instance, in all my childhood I never thought I would have a garden to "toil in" of my own free will! I love how trent connects with the Lord through nature, and how this green plant love is starting to permeate our household.

Aunt Mary brought some soybeans over. It was fascinating to hear how her dad used to proof seeds, and trent remembers his Gpa doing the same. 

basically you take the seeds, roll them up into a thin moist piece of fabric for about 9 days, and see whether they sprout to make sure they're good before you sow the whole field. Basic info to farmers i'm sure, but new to the kids & I. So we decided to try it & call it school!

Trent nabbed the teaching moment and showed the kids the sprouted beans (we also planted some in a cup for instant gratification-they sprout fast!)

Olive got to enjoy a supervised cheerio break. 

this was bedtime devotions one night. Jesus himself told his disciples, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." (John 12:23-24)

Indigo responded with intense spiritual understanding: "When's snack?"  = )

Onto the next thing---when I got the garden itch a month or so ago, we tried growing micro-greens inside. I always have lots of project ideas, and most never come to fruition, but the kids worked hard on this one with fun results.

Couldn't find a cheap shallow tray in a shape I liked, so we used plant liners in 2 different sizes, 1 fits into the other. The inner one needed holes for drainage, so that was tait's job to punch them with a screwdriver. 

Finally found a use for those glass gems that have been floating around the house. They went in the bottom of the inner liner for weight and filtration.

We used an organic potting mix made for indoor plants, not the garden. One source recommended pre-wetting the soil before planting. The fun part!

It smelled soooo good. There was snow on the ground but it seemed like spring inside.

More cheerios for Olive. I didn't feel brave enough to have her help.

Swiss chard & carrots. Keep reading to find out which performed the best.

clean up is part of every job!

Basically, you just lay the seeds on top of the soil & then cover with a cloth & put in the sun. Since we don't have a warming mat or grow lights, I just stuck em on the dishwasher when we ran it for warmth. Water occasionally based on soil moisture.

I didn't plan the timing real well, because we were in Arizona when they did most of their growing, but Aunt Marlise treated our sprouts well! Once they sprout, uncover them and leave them in indirect sunlight. Tait kept an observation journal to draw things that we'd done and what the sprouts looked like on each day. 

I think growing these made the kids like them more. Tait ate them on meat, salad, etc. Indigo ate them plain! 

the swiss chard

Both sprouts had a peppery herbal taste that was sooooo good!

carrots-sprouting winner by far, and my fav taste

The seeds were smaller and I think that helped. You can also buy micro green blends, which are kind of nice because they offer different flavors but sprout at the same time. 

We are tossing them out tomorrow because the last few days i noticed little flecks of mold at the base of the sprouts-probably from overwatering. bummer! By the way, once these sprout you only water by putting the liner into water-don't water from the top for the mold reason. 

Absolute favorite reference: Indoor Kitchen Gardening by Elizabeth Millard

I also appreciated "Johnny's" & "Territorial Seed Co." seed catalogs

So....do you have any seeds in the mail? Garden plans or non-plans?! Have you had any surprise interests (like my plant-love) sneak up on you?