Sprouting Sunflower Seeds......

this looks like a pretty easy way to sprout fresh food during the winter months. we're going to try it. there's a great video at the end of this article...

Sprouting Sunflower Seeds

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/sunflower-sprouts-the-ins-and-outs.html?&page=2

This same process works great for lots of different seeds....

Great post!

thanks jami! i was wondering about other seeds in the same process, other than squash.

I should have said seeds and grains    Here's a quick list

mung bean
Wheat
Millet
Fenugreek
Herb Robert
Gotu Kola
Brahmi
Sheep Sorrel
Sweet Leaf
Lentils
Sunflower
Watercress
Chia
Psyllium
Buckwheat
Amaranth

i started my sunflowers 3 days ago there almost up

I buy 50 pound bags of sunflower seed as animal feed.  I have never heard of sunflower plants as greens.  I could try this right now. 

i just found a sunflower head from a year ago from our gardens. going to start them today.

i have done seeds in jars and such, but never this way. looks like this way you will get more greens from them, like mushroom flushes.

That is a neat method.

I could imagine a human pasture polyculture, with mung beans, sunflower, dandelion, wheat...

back in the 60's i bought these plastic sreens that will fit on top of a wide mouth quart jar..3 of them...different size holes..for sprouting seeds..you soak the seeds and then strain off the water, rinse and strain and the plastic screens keep the seeds, different holes for different size seeds, from falling into the sink when you drain.

they  work well and i've used them for more than 40 years..around 50..from my hippy days

Sprouting seeds in soil, as the video shows verses in water produces a bit different end-product.  Used for different reasons as you can imagine.

Here is the fast breakdown -

Water will give you the fastest sprouts, are usually eaten with relatively small tails, do not have to be place in sun light and are consumed for the live enzymes and nutrients found in sprouted seeds.

While sprouts grown in soil take longer because you are going for the material that is above ground, so you 'sprout' them longer; will need exposure to indirect sun light to generate the desired chlorophyll and these sprouts are said to contain more nutrients/minerals, obtained from the soil of course. 

Soil Sprouting
Soil sprouting can be used to produce lettuce-like buckwheat greens or pea shoots, crunchy sunflower greens, or chlorophyll rich wheat or barley grass.

1. Fill pots, trays, or other containers (with drainage) 1/2 to 2/3 full of soil, compost, or potting mix. Ensure that the growing medium doesn't contain artificial fertilizers or chemicals.
2. Soak wheat 8 hr., buckwheat or sunflowers 12-18 hr., and spread on the soil surface just touching. Water the soil well and cover with plastic. Leave one side slightly loose for ventilation.
3. Mist or sprinkle daily; uncover after three days.
4. Put the container(s) in sunlight or bright light for 5-8 days, until the crop is 5-6" tall. Keep growing medium moist.
5. Cut as needed, but before plants become too old and tough.
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Hints and Options for soil sprouting
Wheatgrass may be left for a smaller second crop. Buckwheat, peas and sunflowers cut only once. Spent soil and roots can be composted or dug into the garden. These crops can also be grown in baskets or tray type sprouters. Baskets are more trouble to clean and sanitize. Sunflowers grown in a perforated tray without soil really do well with wet feet. After 2 or three days, when roots have started to form, set the tray in a pan containing about .5cm (1/4") of water. Change or add water as needed until you have delicious 3" or 4 " tall shoots.
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Serving Suggestions

* Grilled Cheese - liven up a grilled cheese sandwich with your favorite sprouts and a tomato slice.
* Tacos - Use sprouts instead of shredded lettuce in tacos.
* Hamburgers & Hot dogs - sprouts can replace lettuce in these kid's favorites.
* Sandwiches, Subs and Pitas - sprouts are a delicious addition to any of these.
* Salads - add fresh sprouts to just about any salad, or create your own sprout salad. (hint -- radish sprouts are great in coleslaw or potato salad, or anyplace you'd use radishes.
* Omelets - Add a half cup of sprouts to your omelets just before folding. Sprout mixes or alfalfa are great for this.
* Breads - a half cup of sprouts per loaf makes a tasty, nutritious addition to homemade breads. (Add with the liquids) The sprout nutrients also seem to help the yeast produce a higher loaf.
* Soups - a few sprouts added just before serving are great in many soups.
* Peanut butter sandwiches - believe it or not, I love sprouts in peanut butter sandwiches! Use your imagination. Please let us know when you find a new use for sprouts.
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Information quoted from http://www.sprouting.com/homesprouting.htm

Jami McBride wrote:......
1. Fill pots, trays, or other containers (with drainage) 1/2 to 2/3 full of soil, compost, or potting mix. Ensure that the growing medium doesn't contain artificial fertilizers or chemicals.
2. Soak wheat 8 hr., buckwheat or sunflowers 12-18 hr., and spread on the soil surface just touching. Water the soil well and cover with plastic. Leave one side slightly loose for ventilation.
3. Mist or sprinkle daily; uncover after three days.....

that's interesting. in the article and video i posted it says the sunflower seeds can be crowded, and she used a cookie sheet or pan with no drainage holes. they also never mentioned covering the seeds, and to add a cup of water a day...tho, i am finding misting helpful to keep them moist.

You bring up a great point . . . . . obviously you can tweak the process.

I find this same things happens with all instructions/recipes - we try what we are told, but then very quickly we start to tweak the process to fit ourselves and/or our situations and needs 

There is lots of info on sprouting seeds with water (even a toilet sprouter devise on youtube) as well as, some what less but good info on sprouting with soil, all over the Net.  As I said you choose what meets your end goals.  As you become comfortable with the process you may start to do some tweaking yourself. 

never thought of using soil for sprouts..but you would think you would be wasting both the soil and the root of the sprout..and they would be dirty...i prefer my way..you can put them in a window to green them up nicely before you eat them without soil too

i never thought of the soil trick either brenda, but it sounds like it might extend our gathering of sprouts/greens quite a bit.

Brenda Groth wrote:you would think you would be wasting both the soil and the root of the sprout..

I think a tray of soil would be a better place to sow seeds for transplant after buckwheat and mung beans had sprouted in it a couple of times: the legume roots would be time-release nitrogen, and the bucwheat roots would bind the soil together long before the transplants became root-bound. And perhaps just as important, the population of microbes associated with roots would be up.

Simple and superb! Don't know why I didn't think of it! But never did 

I sprouted sunflower seeds the normal way and found the hulls a pain to remove so stopped. This is really neat.

Chelle

before trying buckweat greans you might want to see this:http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0ISW/is_257/ai_n7638045/

hey... i made myself some sprouting jars from used jars of honey or other stuff bought from the supermarket. i only use the ones with plastic lids and drill lots of holes into the lids and scrape of the plastic trimming stuff which you get from drilling.

i place them on the kitchen sink for draining (uo ward down) and water them 1-2 times per day.

i think that sunflowers sprouted in a jar will have some chlorophyll and fibre as well. you can leave them until they are 5-7 cm long (maybe even longer) and when the first two leaves are fully developed.

i do soilsprouting with wheat, but i ll cover it with soil also. i get mold nearly all the time. which is not considered a problem but i don t want to have it in our flat. so i spray mold with vinegar water. it works, but i m not very happy with that. any advice on that?