Dear Yogis,
A practical, money saving newsletter this morning, whilst you are trying out the revelations in yesterday’s about meditation.
OK. I got it. So you are not going into the bush to forage no matter how great the results – and few of you have the room or the inclination to prepare, plant and wait for vegetables to grow, even in pots…. this may be tempered if Coles runs out of veggies, but may not apply to you today. mind you, Coles was running out of greens when I was in there over the weekend, and the “SPECIAL” price tag on an organic cabbage was (wait for it) $10! I understand organic anything are more expensive because they are more labour intensive, but not $10 for a cabbage harder. What will happen as this covid isolation and non-travel bites deeper?
There is an answer….Have you thought about SPROUTS and MICROGREENS? These can be grown in glass jars in your kitchen, or in trays somewhere protected. They give results quickly, are packed with nutrients, and you don’t have to go out in the cold!
Because they are an easy way to get vitamins, minerals and fibre easily and right away – clip and eat – I always have something growing in jars in the kitchen for clipping and sprinkling on soups, veggies and open sandwiches. Recently I have been processing acorns for muesli and ointment, now have radishes and flax seed, and over the coming weekend I have everything I need to start a few trays of seeds I have been storing, Daikon being a favourite and top of the list. I am trying my beautiful organic flax two ways 1. in a sprouting jar, and 2. as a micro green in a tray. Chia, Alfalfa, Sunflower will all get a tray for themselves… it is easy.
When you start, some seeds will not go along with what you have planned for them at all.
Start (if you are a newbie) with Mung beans.. in about four days you will have a bundle of great greens to toss into your evening stir fry. Lentils, peas, beans even buckwheat will try to please with lovely elegant little sprouts just waiting for a salad (or a pancake), to enhance.
If you are impatient, these are perfect. They are quick, they are prolific, they are power packed… the absolute easiest superfood, and great to start children in gardening. When you buy seeds to use in this way, you can buy them on line, at grocery stores and nurseries. You have to make sure they are within their sell-by date and all things being equal, you should get about a 90% germination result. Choose young seeds over older ones because germination rate diminishes with time. Store in a cool dark drawer. There is no difference between an organic seed and an ordinary one as far as reproduction and germination go.
They can be grown year round. Doesn’t matter what is happening in the garden, they don’t care as long as the room temperature agrees with them. Sprouts don’t care about light, although shoots need some. A porch or a window sill will do just fine.
They are budget friendly, use almost no resources, and are champion producers turning 3oz of seed into 3 cups of food (Alfalfa even more). You can plant them in your empty milk cartons halved lengthways and with a layer of soil, sand or cotton wool… just like in primary school experiments. you can also use your throw-away plastic food containers. You can use these plastic containers quite a few times before consigning them to the rubbish bin.
Soaking and sprouting is a smart way to go making valuable nutrients available – and in covid, nutrition is the number one consideration….. I will let you know how I go, and when I can I will share my seeds with you. Flax I can share right away.
By the way Cumquats and other citrus are available right now. You either have none, or you have so many you are letting them rot. Don’t. Use them or give them to someone who will use them. I am making spiced oil with dried cumquat peel, preserved cumquats, cumquats in port, and I am thinking of chocolate dipped cumquat peel (when it is dried the peel is sweet). What are you making….?
GROW, GROW, GROW..
NAMASTE. JAHNE