Growing Microgreens

The juicy, tender shoots of vegetable and herb mini seedlings are all the rage. They taste great and are perfect for salads and for garnishing summer dishes. Grow your own for the freshest results.

Gather together

• Wide-mouthed, shallow pot
• Seedling mix
• Bonemeal or superphosphate
• Vermiculite
• Drainage pebbles
• Seeds – just about any vegetable or herbs seeds can be used. We used carrots, beetroot, chives, Swiss chard and lettuce in our mix

The process

1. Make sure there are drainage holes in your container. Add pebbles to the bottom, and then fill the container with potting soil and some bonemeal or superphosphate. One bag of seedling mix will need around four handfuls of bonemeal.
2. Firm down the soil with a wooden trowel or a piece of wood.
3. In a container, mix all the seeds with a generous amount of flour (you can also use river sand or mealie meal for this). This bulks up the seeds and makes it easier to distribute them evenly.
4. Sow the seeds in the container and cover them with a 5 mm layer of vermiculite.
5. Water well and keep watering once or even twice a day in hot weather.
6. After the seedlings have reached a height of around 3-5 cm, they can be harvested with a pair of scissors for your summer dishes.