Now that you all have your gardens in for the season… can you identify the following plant starts?

Answers:
1. Cauliflower 2. Basil - Thai 3. Cabbage – Golden Acre
4. Arugula 5. Sunflower 6. Chia
7. Red Amaranth 8. Corn- Batam 9. Kale – Blue Curled.

I hope you did well; these seedlings can be pretty tough to identify when they are just a few days old. If you were given the chance to taste these as part of the identification process you would be amazed at how much these small seedlings called microgreens reflect the flavor of their adult counterparts.

Microgreens and Baby Salad Greens are foods you can add to your countertop garden and have peak flavors of regular garden vegetables in just 10 days. Imagine your salad or sandwiches having delicious flavors of Micro Basil, Micro Broccoli, Micro Sunflower, Micro Kale, Micro Arugula, Micro Radish, Micro Cauliflower, Micro Cabbage, Micro Mustard and Micro Pak Choi.

What are Microgreens and Baby Salad Greens?

Micro Greens – Micro greens are the second stage of a plant’s life, where roots establish themselves and the first leaves (called cotyledons) appear. Micro greens are harvested at this stage before the adult stage leaves (true leaves) emerge. Plants in the micro green stage are typically at their peak of flavor intensity.

Baby Salad Greens – Baby salad greens of every variety are usually easier to grow in soil and are allowed to grow for a week or two beyond the micro green stage when the adult leaves have emerged. Baby greens are harvested while they are still juvenile plants. The flavors are much closer to their full adult stage, and they have had ample opportunity to absorb more minerals from the soil.

Reasons to Grow Microgreens:

• Healthy – Microgreens are extremely dense in vital enzymes, minerals and vitamins, and chlorophyll. There aren’t many foods you could eat that are fresher.
• Delicious – Enjoy a dazzling array of new flavors. Plants are at their absolute peak of flavor intensity at the microgreens stage of life.
• Different – Your friends and family will be amazed at this new and exciting way to eat. Microgreens are perfect as a complete salad, additions to traditional salad, on sandwiches, in soups, as garnishes and much more.

Fun – Microgreens can be grown hydroponically, with virtually no mess. It is perfect for countertop gardening. GrowingMicrogreens.com kits take the guesswork out of growing. Start with the easy seeds and move on to experiment with more challenging seeds for an exciting and challenging new hobby.