amazon.com/dp/B005WOTYRY – GotSprouts.com – 5 lbs $29.95 + $13.89 shipping
super easy method
1/4 cup black oil sunflower seeds
soak in water for 8 hrs
drain water, spread soaked seeds in a glass pie plate, then leave in closet for about 3 days (cover with another glass pie plate)
Once the sprouts have raised the top glass pie plate by an inch, go ahead & place next to window (remove top glass pie plate)
the next 24 hours you should see some major growth (day 5)
3-5″ high around day 6 (ready to eat)
…in summer they grow faster vs winter…
…rinse & drain seeds 1x daily…
…mist with a spray bottle…
Sunflower Sprouts are PACKED with protein (one of the the highest protein sprout – along w/ green peas). Its about 30x more in nutrition than veggies (even the home-grown ones)!
Its affordable and simple to do – and requires very little time. In about a week – you will have tasty sprouts to munch on as a snack or spruce up your salads, sandwiches or green smoothies!!
When you grow them yourself – you can guarantee its freshness & organic content. :)
“I harvest when they turn deep green and they haven’t wasted nutrients on roots and second leaves.”
“I rinse with H2O & GFSE to nix any chance of mold as I am sensitive to it…”
When consuming sprouts, you are harvesting within a week or so. This means soil is not required, as the seed itself provides all nutrients needed during that initial timeframe. The sprouts will not reach the stage where additional nutrient levels must be provided from the soil.
As a sprout, all the nutrition required is already in the seed. It does not need to draw from the soil to achieve its full potential (as a sprout). Therefore, all the required energy is provided from the seed. If the goal was to produce a fully mature plant or acquire multiple harvests, then it would be a different story.
For example, with wheatgrass, using a no soil system will provide 2+ harvests before the nutrients have been depleted. If you wanted to harvest many times over, nutrients would need replenishing via the soil.
The sun will also help the sprouts produce chlorophyll and other nutrients. In addition, you can add plant food to the water like salt and other trace minerals.
It would be best to consume sprouts, as its more nutritious than when or older or matured.
more sunflower sprout info