Speedy sprouts
Sprouts are quick turnaround greens that come in many different varieties, with very simple growing needs. Packed with nutrition, all they require to grow are a container and regular rinsing and draining.
Mung beans are something I always have on the sprout, as they are crunchy, juicy and keep well once sprouted.
They are super easy to get going - just put 1cm depth or less in a jar (depends how many you are feeding) and cover with water overnight, then drain and rinse a couple of times a day.
Once sprouted, keep in the fridge or a cool area.
Mung beans are packed with vitamins A, C and nutrients, including iron, zinc, selenium and calcium.
They are great by themselves, in a smoothie, in a soup, salad or stir-fry.
If you sprout these beans in the dark, it will encourage longer sprout tails. They need 2-3 days to be edible during summer and slightly longer in winter.
This same growing process can be used to sprout chickpeas, lentils and peas to give you a variety of nutritious edible sprouts.
Growing without soil
If you need to grow food without a garden, you can grow a variety of salad leaves on wet kitchen paper or cotton wool if you don’t have soil available, including miniature rocket, mustard, cress, mesclun and kale.
Believe it or not, wet kitchen paper and cotton wool are great for germinating seeds.
When I was a kid, my mum used to have a pottery hedgehog we grew mustard and cress on that had a layer of cotton wool over it and when it sprouted it looked like a hedgehog with its spines.
Simply get a vessel that you can lay wet kitchen paper or cotton wool over, sprinkle the seeds and watch the magic.
The seeds will sprout in a couple of days and this can be kept on your bench indoors.
They will take up to 14 days to get to a reasonable height, but you can start small harvests after 7-10 days. You can expect to harvest 2-3 cuttings per sowing.
Highly nutritious, simple and easy to achieve.
Growing in containers with soil
If you do have access to some soil or potting mix, you can also grow larger vegetables in a container. You will need a container with drainage holes and at least 100mm depth to enable the root systems to grow.
Put your soil in the container, thoroughly moisten and sprinkle the seeds evenly over. Then cover with a lid or paper towels to enable quicker germination.
There are lots of veges you can grow like this, including all the mesclun varieties, which contain many different veges on a small scale.
It is time to remove the cover once the seeds have germinated and begin pushing the cover-up.
Wait for the seedlings to go green, then water sparingly once a day and they will take 45-60 days to mature.
Again, you can expect three harvests from these, after which time, I tip mine upside down into either a compost or another container and the strongest ones will sprout and can be left to grow to full maturity, giving you four cycles of food for one sowing.
Did you know that onions can be grown as micros in the same way?
They are a bit slower to germinate, as the seeds are a lot harder, so the best way to get a good crop out of these is to sow as above but scatter more seeds. A denser crop will give you a better flavour for a small cut.
Harvest when they are about 7cm high, which typically takes about 28 days to mature, much like coriander.
Other favourites to grow in containers for quick turnarounds are rainbow lights silverbeet and pak choi.
These often overlooked vegetables help bulk up of your dishes with plenty of nutrients.
The silverbeet is available in yellow, red, white and pink - simply sow seeds close together for best results and, after 28 days, you can harvest the beautiful multi-coloured shiny leaves.
Pak choi takes only 40-50 days to mature and will thrive in a cool area.
For more gardening advice, visit growinspired.co.nz and discover Claire Mummery’s online gardening course at www.growinspiredacademy.com
