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Sprout seeds and bleach (question)

Posts: 6

Location: Tampa Florida

posted 12 years ago

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I started growing sprouts in my house and I read the instructions on the pack and they said soak the seeds in 2% bleach for 15min to kill food born illness, they are USDA organic seeds. Does anyone do this or any thoughts?

Kris Minto

Posts: 137

Location: Ottawa, Canada -- Zone 4b/5a

posted 12 years ago

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Not sure why this is suggested when alcohol would do the same thing but on a more environmentally friend approach.

David Hartley

Posts: 258

posted 12 years ago

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I avoid chlorine at almost all costs... I really am trying to detoxify my life... Slowly, but surely

Might I suggest a homebrewed batch of colloidal silver

Robert Ray

gardener

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Location: Cascades of Oregon

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posted 12 years ago

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I use hydrogen peroxide

Our inability to change everything should not stop us from changing what we can.

Garrick Revels

Posts: 6

Location: Tampa Florida

posted 12 years ago

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Robert Ray wrote:I use hydrogen peroxide

How long do you let them soak?

Bob Dobbs

Posts: 145

posted 12 years ago

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I would use the bleach unless you grew the seeds yourself/know the seeds didn't get a little wet with poo water and then dried and sold. I personally ignore it myself and just eat em, but then again, a few days ago my house was "the house of cholera" in a manner of speaking hahahaha....

Garrick Revels

Posts: 6

Location: Tampa Florida

posted 12 years ago

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Bob Dobbs wrote:I would use the bleach unless you grew the seeds yourself/know the seeds didn't get a little wet with poo water and then dried and sold. I personally ignore it myself and just eat em, but then again, a few days ago my house was "the house of cholera" in a manner of speaking hahahaha....

That doesn't sound fun at all, hope your better now.

Robert Ray

gardener

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Location: Cascades of Oregon

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posted 12 years ago

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A 5 min soak initially and I give the finished sprouts a final rinse.

I have never experimented but have seen several articles on Peroxide helping sprout seed in the garden.
http://www.articlesbase.com/gardening-articles/give-sprouting-seeds-a-head-start-with-hydrogen-peroxide-131216.html

Our inability to change everything should not stop us from changing what we can.

Bob Dobbs

Posts: 145

posted 12 years ago

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Should work fine, most obligate aerobic bacteria and all obligate anaerobic bacteria lack peroxidase to my knowledge, so unless someone with say strep throat threw up on the mung beans, you should be fine. Here's an overly technical link to skim: http://textbookofbacteriology.net/nutgro_4.html

I'm fine now, I figure it was norwalk-like virus as opposed to anything food related because of duration and spread.

Judith Browning

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Location: Ozarks zone 7 alluvial, clay/loam with few rocks 50" yearly rain

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posted 12 years ago

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We sprout a lot of green lentils and eat them raw and sometimes steamed but I've never thought about needing to use anything to kill bacteria. Does this appear often? or is it just a general precaution? I thought it was a concern in fresh alfalfa sprouts in grocery stores. I usually buy five pound bags of dry organic lentils (not ones sold for sprouting) they sprout great and we eat them a few times a week.

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R Scott

pollinator

Posts: 4146

Location: Kansas Zone 6a

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posted 12 years ago

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Bleach kills the mold spores so you have a much better success rate with the sprouts.

Cheap, easy, effective, and the chlorine is long gone before the seed sprout. But peroxide and alcohol work if you don't want chlorine.

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Bob Dobbs

Posts: 145

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I tried to see if there was, in particular, a risk of the bacteria being inside the seed, couldn't find anything either way except a single article commenting that the bacteria got "in the cracks" of the seed. I would continue eating raw sprouts myself (insert generic legal liability disclaimer, blah blah blah). The stated risks seem to be similar to drinking raw milk or doing just about anything else good for you. I wouldn't worry about it myself. Just rinse the seeds well and you will be fine.

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