Garden Lessons: Growing Microgreens
What are “Microgreens?”
“Microgreens” is a fancy way of saying “seedlings,” which are the tiny plants that grow from seeds. Microgreens are grown for their nutrition and taste, and many restaurants use them. You can use Microgreens in soups, salads, sandwiches, and even on pizza!
Use up-cycled materials, like cardboard egg cartons, to grow nutritious and yummy microgreens and track their growth in this fun activity!
Supplies needed:
Egg cartons
2-4 Tablespoons of Microgreen seeds (per egg carton)
Spray bottle with water
Soil
Scissors (for harvesting)
Step 1: Prepare Your Egg Carton
What kind of microgreens are you growing? Label your egg carton with the type of microgreens you are planting, like “radish,” “broccoli,” pea,” or even “sunflower.” Add soil to both sides of your egg carton, and put in a place that is warm. We recommend putting a plate underneath so it doesn’t get messy!
Step 2: Plant Seeds
Spray your soil with water until it is damp. Using your fingers, sprinkle your seeds all over the soil. Press the seeds gently into the soil, and spray again.
Setp 3: WAtch Them Grow & Record Progress
Make sure your Microgreens don’t dry out by continuing to spray them with water every day until the soil is damp but not soaking. They should start to sprout within 3-7 days.
Every few days, record observations about your microgreens on your Observation Worksheet. Some guiding questions: Has anything changed since the last time you recorded your observations? Do they look different, smell different, or feel different? If you planted two different types of Microgreens, is one growing faster than the other, or are they growing at the same pace? Has the color of the leaves changed?
Step 4: Harvest and Enjoy!
Once each tiny plant has at least 4 leaves on it, it’s time to harvest your microgreens! Use scissors to clip the greens close to the soil. Rinse them off and put them in salads, sandwiches, soups, or even on pizza!