Have you ever wondered about the difference between Sprouts and Microgreens? Read on to learn more! Sprouts & Microgreens may look similar, but they are actually slightly different stages of a plant's life! 🌱 What are Sprouts? Sprouts are the beginning of growth! A sprout is produced when a seed starts its journey of growing into adulthood. Imagine this - every floret of broccoli you eat comes from a mature head of broccoli that was once just a little seed that became a little sprout! There are many seeds that when grown to the sprout stage are tasty and healthy! The sprout stage is the 2-4 days of growth after germination. The seed stores the nutrients for the plant to begin development of its roots, stem and cotyledons (the first leaves to appear from a germinating seed!). We usually can’t see the sprout stage when plants are grown in soil of course, but if you grow them at home in a jar with water, you get to witness this stage of life! With Hamama Seed Quilts, the sprout stage happens underneath the Seed Quilt cover. So if you peek through the slightly opaque cover you can get a glimpse (See Sean's photos below)! Photo from The Plan Riot Photo from MRSIRAPHOL - FREEPIK.com Photos taken by: Hamama Friends group member, Sean Goodman What are Microgreens? Microgreens are the intermediate stage between sprouts and baby greens and they grow in about 7-14 days. They will have formed the cotyledons and sometimes even their first set of true leaves, unlike sprouts. Microgreens are usually grown in higher light conditions with lower humidity, either in soil or a hydroponic growing pad (like Hamama Seed Quilts)! Because microgreens are grown in a medium and not directly soaking in water, microgreens are less susceptible to bacterial contamination than sprouts.* Also, microgreens are often considered to offer more developed flavor and texture than sprouts.* *Ebert, Andreas. “Sprouts, microgreens, and edible flowers.” 2012. PDF File. Photo Source Here at Hamama, we test all our microgreen seeds for the common strains like e Coli and salmonella and of course, they must pass in order to be packaged into our Seed Quilts. Our growing process is also specifically designed with safety in mind! The seeds are never soaking in water, unlike sprouts, but rather the Seed Quilt wicks up water from below as needed. Our coconut fiber mat is also great for airflow around the roots which is the best way to combat the growth of the "bad stuff"! Just like sprouts, microgreens can easily be grown at home, in containers on a windowsill. An especially fun thing to do with microgreens is to grow several varieties together to create unique combinations of tastes, textures, and colors (Like Hamama’s Super Salad & Zesty Mix seed quilts)! Microgreens are concentrated with a diverse set of vitamins and antioxidants and fiber. Nutrient levels in different microgreens vary, but they typically have higher levels per gram of vitamin C, vitamin E and carotenoids (plant compounds, some used to make vitamin A and others help maintain eye health) than mature crops.* *Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2016 64 (48), 9161-9171 Photo taken by: Allison Riebe (Hamama Happiness Team Member) Simply put, sprouts are the newly germinated seeds while microgreens are 1-2 weeks old. Both fun to grow and eat!! 🌺🌿 Hamama offers microgreen broccoli, red cabbage, radish, super salad mix, wheatgrass, zesty mix, kale, clover, fenugreek & wasabi mustard! 🌱 *The Super Salad Mix is broccoli, kale, arugula, kohlrabi, cauliflower, and cabbage. The Zesty Mix is the same but with mustard instead of cauliflower! Broccoli– Mild, crunchy, dense, slightly bitter Clover– Mild earthy, nutty, crunchy, juicy. Similar to Alfalfa! Kale– Mild, subtly sweet, broccoli-like taste Radish– Strong, Peppery, Spicy Wheatgrass– Mild, sweet, "grassy." Fenugreek- Subtle bitter taste, mild spicy, nutty Cabbage- Mild, earthy, slight sweet, juicy Cauliflower (In our salad mix)– Mild, peppery Kohlrabi (In our salad mix)– Mild, sweet Mustard (In our zesty mix)– Sweet, mildly spicy, zesty Wasabi/Mustard- Slightly Bitter, Spicy, Zesty (Great in Southern & Asian cuisines) Don’t miss out on the fun! You get everything you need to start growing your own fresh greens at home with our Starter Kit, found on our Shop Page. Can’t wait to start growing with you! 🌱
