Grow Your Own Sprouts and Always Have Fresh Greens

Sprouts are easy to grow on your kitchen countertop and can be ready in less than a week. Here’s how I do it.

Do you live in a climate where it is hard to grow lettuce? For me, in zone 9b in Florida, I can grow lettuce in the late fall and through winter, but the rest of the year, it is too hot.

Yet I want fresh greens to put on sandwiches and add to salads. I also want to produce more of my food and rely less on grocery stores.

I have found growing sprouts on my kitchen counter to be a great alternative. They are quick to produce, require little space, and are cost. 

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Watch Video

Here's the video of my process for sprouting seeds. Supplies and instructions are below.

Supplies:

1. Sprouting Seeds (I've purchased from Sprout People and from Mountain Rose Herbs with great results)
2. Glass jar - I use a pint size
3. Cover for the jar that lets you drain water – you can use cheesecloth and rubber band it around the top, which is what I did initially. However, it is messy, and the cheesecloth quickly wears out. I purchased a set of three from Sprout People and have found them to be a great help. You can easily change the screen from the smallest to larger holes to let the water drain effectively as the sprouts grow

To Sprout:

Put 1 tablespoon of sprouting seeds in the jar. If you have a larger jar, you can use more seeds and make more sprouts; however, be sure you will use them all before they go bad – mine last about 10 to 12 days in the refrigerator.

Cover seeds with plenty of water. You want to be sure they get completely wet.

Stir to be sure all seeds are wet.

Cover with a lid that will let you drain and let sit in a darker place on a counter for 8-12 hours. Different seeds have different soak times, so check the package or do an internet search for optimal soak times. I like to start mine in the evening and let them soak overnight.

Drain off the water. You may want to turn it upside down on a dish drainer to let the most of the water drain out.

Set the sprouts on the counter out of direct light.

About every 12 hours, add water to the jar and swirl it around to be sure all seeds are wet. Drain.

Continue with this until most of the seeds have sprouted and filled the jar. This will vary depending on the type of seed and the temperature of your home. Mine are ready a day or so earlier in summer than winter.

Remove from the jar and put in a container in the refrigerator.

How to Use Sprouts

1. Put them on sandwiches. When it is too hot to grow lettuce, these are a great replacement. 
2. Add them to salads.
3. Mixed them into egg salad for a bit of crunch and flavor.
4. Eat them out of hand as a snack.

Setting Up My First GreenStalk Garden

Interested in a GreenStalk Garden? Here is how I set up and what I planted in my first GreenStalk.

A GreenStalk Garden can be a great way to increase your growing area even in a small space. My garden is on my patio, and while I've expanded to include a couple of raised beds, a GreenStalk lets me add more.

You can watch the video of the entire set-up, or read below for how I set mine up.

Setting up your GreenStalk is easy, but there are a few tips I learned while setting mine up.

This article contains affiliate links. That means if you click the link and make a purchase, I may receive compensation at no additional cost to you.

Included with your GreenStalk are instructions. They are not complicated, but be sure and read through them carefully.

How to Set Up Your GreenStalk Garden

After unboxing your GreenStalk, be sure you place it on a firm and level area. This was a mistake I made. The area I put it in is filled with lava rock. I leveled the rock as much as I could, then placed a concrete paver on it. It seemed sturdy and level, but when I put the base on it, I found it wasn't. First, the paver wasn't large enough for the entire base to sit on, and second, it wasn't level.

My husband realized the problem and took out the lava rocks, put down two pavers, and firmly tamped it in place. (Thanks, honey!!) When I set the base on it, I realized how much better it was.

The GreenStalk doesn't come with a base, and you do not need one. There are three bases to choose from: a spinner, a roller, and a spinner with rollers. I knew I needed to be able to spin my around making it easier to tend to in limited space, and so all sides can get some sun during the winter. I wasn't going to be able to roll mine, so didn't need that type of base. Think about where you are going to put yours and decide what you need.

If you have a base, a drainage tube will be included in your box. Go ahead and put that in, then set the base in place. 

Assemble the GreenStalk Garden Tiers

To assemble the GreenStalk, take one tier and put it on the base if you have one. Fill with potting soil. As the instructions say, fill it completely. When you think it is full, add some more. 

Then take one of the grey disks and place it on top of the tier. The disks are the water reservoir for each level, and small holes are near the edge to drip the water into the soil below. Line the holes up with each pocket of the tier. 

Get another tier and put it on top of the first one. NOTE: Be sure the tier locks into place with the one below. It may not completely lock into place until you fill it with soil, so be sure and check after you fill it.

Fill with soil and place the grey disk. Be sure everything is lined up properly, then add the next tier.

Repeat until all tiers are in place, then place the reservoir on top, again locking it in place with the tier below.

Pour water into the top reservoir. Continue adding until it runs out of the drainage tube.

Your Greenstalk Garden is now ready to plant.

Two reminders: 

1. Be sure your GreenStalk is set on a firm and level area 
2. Make sure each tier locks in place.

Get Your Own GreenStalk Garden

Interested in your own GreenStalk? If you go to GreenStalk Gardens through this link, you will get $10 off your order of at least $75. 

Happy growing!

Fall 2022 Seed Order

I placed seed orders with four different seed companies. Here's what I received.

November may seem an odd time to talk about new seeds, but where I garden, zone 9b on the Atlantic coast of Florida, we are in a cooler season to grow things others grow during the summer.

For this order, I have some herbs and vegetables I'll plant now, and others that I will start as we near our last average frost date in February.

Even if you won't be able to plant for months, it is always fun to look through seeds and think about what you want to plant when you can. 

Watch the video below to see what I received.

The seed companies I ordered from were:

Baker Creek

Botanical Interests

Seed Savers

Working Food

Hurricane Ian Preparation and Aftermath on the Beachside Homestead

Living a block from the Atlantic Ocean in Florida, we are familiar with preparing for a hurricane. Here is what our urban homestead did to prepare for Hurricane Ian, and what we dealt with after.

In the nine years I've lived in Florida, I have been through several hurricanes and tropical storms. Thanks to my husband, who has lived here longer, we have a good plan to prepare for hurricanes. No plan is perfect; however, it is better than having nothing.

When we were first put in the "cone of uncertainty" by the National Weather Service, I began preparing by printing off my Hurricane Preparation Checklist. (Click to learn how I made mine and do one for your unique needs.)

Then I began pulling out things I needed: flashlights and batteries, candles and lighters, rain gear, and towels to soak up any water that came in. I emptied much of the ice from my ice maker, putting it in bags in the freezer. This has a dual purpose. If we lose power, the ice helps things in the freezer stay frozen longer. If we don't have water, we can melt the ice and use it to drink and cook with.

The garden has to wait until the last minute, so the plants get as much sunlight as possible. Some go into the garage while others are moved to a corner on the patio. The good thing about a container garden is most of the plants are easy to move.

We tied down the awning over the front door, and staked a tied a few of our decorative bushes and fruit trees. Most of the fruit trees I have grown from seed and don't want to lose them.

By the time the rain arrived on Wednesday, we were finished and safely inside.

Watch the video that shows some of the prep work and also the aftermath of Hurricane Ian on our home.

Protect Your Summer Garden with an Inexpensive DIY Sun Shade

During the heat of summer, a sun shade may protect your garden plants. Here's an inexpensive DIY version that I tried.

Living in gardening zone 9b, I've learned that July and August are not good for growing crops. Even heat loving vegetables can slow or stop producing as the sun that beats down on them daily. No amount of watering can compensate for the brutal sun. 

Shade, however, can offer some relief. Please understand that this won't let you grow crops that northern friends grow with ease during the summer. What it can do is help keep plants alive and prevent damage to produce.

My Garden Needed Relief From The Sun

The off-season for gardening in Florida is the heat of the summer. July and August are not good times to grow things. Plants that produced well during the spring may still be alive, but production is diminished.

My garden is on the patio between my house and garage. It is south facing, and enclosed with a privacy fence and the concrete walls of the garage and house. During the summer, it gets hot in that area.

This year I noticed that my bell peppers, which normally love the summer sun and heat, were getting sunscald. I needed to do something.

One solution is to put up sun shade. The idea intrigued me, but I didn't want to spend a lot of money until I could tell if it helped or not. When I found this article, I knew I had a place to start.

My Sun Shades

I purchased several yards of nylon netting, cut it to (more-or-less) fit over the raised beds, and tied the corners to bamboo sticks inserted in the beds. 

Pros

• It was inexpensive
• It was easy to set up
• It was easy to take down when summer storms blow through

Cons

• It didn't cover the entire bed. I will need to get longer bamboo poles and put them in the ground outside the bed for better coverage.
• It wasn't enough to protect all my plants - my green beans shriveled and died even with the sun shade (to be fair, I planted them much too late so they probably wouldn't have made it anyway)
• It isn't the prettiest look (although my garden is behind fencing, so only my husband and I see it.

Overall Impression of my DIY Sun Shades

For taller plants, like my everglades tomato, I need taller poles. This also means that other things may not get enough protection, but careful planning of where I plant in the raised beds could mitigate that.

For other containers, I'm going to have to come up with a way to cover them. 

Will I Use Them Again?

Absolutely! My bell peppers, while still small due to the heat, did not have any more sun scald. 

I plan to buy more nylon netting and cut it to better fit over my raised beds. What I used this year can be cut down to place on container plants. 

I was late putting it up this year - mid-July - and want to try it earlier next summer.

If you notice sun damage on plants in your garden, give this easy and inexpensive DIY sun shade a try and see how it works for you.

Tour of Zone 9b Urban Garden June 2022

A garden update for June 2022. I live in Zone 9b, Florida, have an urban, container garden.

The garden is going well this year. After taking out the hot tub and putting two raised beds in the space, there is a lot more room to grow things this year.

Which is good because my husband made a trip to Home Depot in March and came back with six bell pepper plants and six tomato plants of different varieties! The peppers went in one of the beds, while I continue to put tomatoes in smaller containers so they can be moved around. They don't do well under the worst of the Florida sun and I try to find places with a bit of shade for them.

Here's what the garden looks like in June 2022.

 

 

You can see much of the garden in this photo. In the raised bed nearest the camera, the flowering plant hanging over is a penta. There were two of them and they outgrew the space, so I moved one to the other raised bed.

 

In the tomato cage are a couple of everglades tomatoes. You may not be familiar with that variety. They are very small - smaller than a cherry tomato - but they do well in the Florida heat and humidity. I planted the seeds last fall, but they didn't germinate until earlier this year. I often pick 6-8 a day and find them a fun snack or addition to a salad.

 

There is also some celery in there. I planted it last fall and it did not do much, and I am shocked it has not completely died in the heat. Hasn't gotten big enough to really do anything with other than add flavor to cooked dishes, but I still have seeds and will try again this fall.

 

At the far end green beans trying to grow. I've had pretty good luck growing them in containers, but the ones I planted earlier this year in the raised bed did not do well. I realized that in this size raised bed, they need more water. That has helped, but I believe I need to get some shade cloth for them as well.  

The container with the blooming flowers next to the wall is Purple Opal Basil. I received the seeds free with an order from Baker Creek in 2020 and have been thrilled how well it grows here.

To Read: Homegrown and Homemade Basil Pesto

 

On the other side are containers with bell peppers I grew from seed, turmeric, amaranth with some of the tomatoes my husband bought, and a couple of the hanging baskets that were on the ground for a good watering.

Between the beds is a container with New Zealand spinach. This is not a true spinach, but a green that does grow well in my climate. I try to sow seeds every month or so to enjoy these in salads and on sandwiches. You can't tell, but there are also three loquat trees in there. I sprouted the seeds this spring, and am going to move them to larger containers.

Loquat is also known as Japanese Plum. The fruit is smaller than most plums, and has several large seeds in it. It blooms in January and the fruit is ready to pick in February and March.

I sprouted a seed about five years ago. That tree is over five feet tall and I am looking for a place to plant it in our yard.

 

 

Close up of a bell pepper on one of the plants I grew from seed.

 

The other raised bed is where I planted the six pepper plants my husband bought. They have done fantastic! The first peppers I harvested were from the plants I grew from seed, but these have surpassed them. We are about to the point of calling friends and asking if they want any, as well as freezing some. We made stuffed peppers last weekend using peppers we grew. Very satisfying.

I also grow purslane in that bed, another green I add to salads and put on sandwiches, as well as calendula and a few coreopsis that grew from seeds left from last year's plant.

And, I have peanuts growing in there! This wasn't what I had planned, but when neighbors put out peanuts for the squirrels, who then bury them in my garden, what can I do? If the peanut sprouts, I put it in the bed. I did this last year in a couple of small containers and actually grew peanuts. 

Wouldn't it be fun to make my own peanut butter from peanuts I grew?!?

 

 

One of the tomato plants my husband bought. It has done really well, and there are 8-10 tomatoes on there. I have already harvested a few as they have begun to turn color. As you can tell from the leaves, it is getting stressed in the Florida summer sun. Once I pick the tomatoes on there, I'll pull the plant.

 

NOTE: When should you harvest tomatoes? I always thought you should leave them on the vine until they are red and fully ripe. As tomatoes began turning this year, I lost a number of them to some critter or critters who would peck a hole or take a bite. This was only in the containers that had cages on them, so I think they were using the cage to get to them. 

 

To get more of my harvest, I began to pick them as soon as they were obviously changing color and let them ripen in front of a window.

 

Then I came across this Reel on Instagram on the best time to pick tomatoes. Turns out, I was doing the right thing! 

 

Who knew vine-ripened was just a marketing ploy? 

Along the west fence are (from the back) lemongrass, sage, moringa, and two containers with sweet potatoes.

Along this side of the fence are mainly ornamental and flowering plants - cannas, aloe vera, geraniums, and more hanging baskets of airplane plants.

Summer has definitely arrived here. In fact, it arrived in mid-May, which is early for us. So far, most things are hanging in there - the bell peppers thrive in this weather - but the next month will see the last of these tomato plants. Hopefully the green beans will come through. I'm going to buy some nylon netting to use as a shade cloth during the heat of the day. Once I set that up and see how it works, I'll have a post on that.

How is your garden growing this time of year?

Have you downloaded my free Plant Information Sheet? Print out as many copies as you need so you can record the growing, harvesting, and using information for everything you grow. Click here to learn more and get your copy.

Homegrown and Homemade - Basil Pesto

 In this episode of Homegrown and Homemade, I make basil pesto!

Pesto from Basil I Grew from Seed

Backstory - in December 2019, I ordered seeds from Baker Creek. In my order they sent a free package of Dark Purple Opal basil seeds. I planted them in the spring of 2020 and they did really well in my garden. I kept saying I was going to make pesto with it, but I didn't own a food processor. I read articles about doing it by hand with a kitchen knife and thought I would give it a try. But I never did.

I planted the basil again this year, and was determined to do more than add the basil to salads and sandwiches. I bought a food processor and within a day was picking basil and making pesto.  

I had more basil than I needed for that batch of pesto, so I put them on a rack to slowly air dry in my oven. 

My basil plant is still producing and I plan to make more pesto, both to eat fresh and to freeze for eating later.  I have planted more seeds and am letting some go to seed to learn if I can keep some going through the winter. 

What is really exciting about this having something else to put on my pasta. I had trouble with acid reflex a few years ago, and one thing I did to help control it was eliminate tomato-based pasta sauces. Since then, I've eaten pasta with a splash of olive oil and some cheese. It is good that way, but I got tired of only that. This summer I started taking fresh tomatoes, bell peppers and some greens from my garden, sautéed them in some olive oil and tossed with pasta and parmesan cheese. And now, I can make pesto and use that as well!

Making the Pesto

I'm reading The Homemade Pantry: 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making by Alana Chernila and adapted her recipe. Here's what I did:

Chopped 1/2 cup walnuts in the food processor. 

Added in 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 2 cups packed, fresh basil leaves roughly chopped

Processed until basil leaves were finely minced. 

Sprinkled in garlic powder (fresh garlic can be another trigger to my reflux) and 1/2 teaspoon salt, then turned on processor and poured in 1/2 cup olive oil and processed for a few more seconds. (Basically, I ran it until it looked like I wanted it to.)

 

Using and Storing the Pesto

I ate some as a dip with crackers, then put the rest in a container, covered with olive oil, and stored in fridge. You can add in grated parmesan cheese when you eat it. You can also put in freezer (without cheese) and store for up to 6 months.

Once the basil in the oven is dry, I'm going to crumble it up and use in recipes as needed.

Plant Information Sheet

Keep growing information about the plants in your garden with this handy Plant Information Sheet.

Plant Information Sheet

As I learn more about what will grow in my zone, I kept finding myself writing down bits of information I found. It may be from a seed packet or from an internet search, but I needed to find a way to keep it all together so I had it when I needed it. Several years ago I started a notebook, and took one sheet of paper for each plant. 

At least I had all my notes in one place, but when I needed to find out when to plant something or the length to germination, I had to search through everything. There had to be a better way.

This year I created a Plant Information Sheet. On it I can list the type of plant, varieties that are good for my zone, what kind of growing conditions it needs, how to plant, harvest, use, and save seeds from, and any other notes I come across. I even made a section where I can list where I get information so I can refer to it later.

I printed off the sheet and began using it. I soon realized things I needed to add or move around to make it more effective, so I edited the sheet. Used it again and made more edits. Yes, this will be a work in progress for a while, but it is so nice to have.

Get Your Copy of the Plant Information Sheet

And I want to share it with you! You can download the Plant Information Sheet and try it out for your records. It comes in .doc format, so you can edit it to make it work better for you. 

How to Use the Plant Information Sheet

Here's a look at the Plant Information Sheet.

Yes, this is completely free. There is no charge and no newsletter sign-up to get it (at least for now). Share it with your friends and other gardeners you know.

If you have suggestions, please leave them in the comments. As I said, this is a work in progress, so suggestions from others are appreciated.

Recent Harvests from the Container Garden - Pineapple, Bell Peppers, Sweet Potatoes

 July and August in Florida are hot and humid. It is the off-season for growing your own food, but there are still some things producing.

One of my challenges is learning what will grow through this time. Having them in containers means I can move them around, trying to find a bit more shade and relief from the mid-day sun.

The tomatoes are definitely finished, but I am trying to keep the plants going. I am getting a few blooms, but according to a fellow at the farmer's market, they won't set until nighttime temps fall to around 70 degrees F./21 degrees C. I hope I can keep the plants in good shape so once the temps do fall, they will bloom and set the fruit.

One happy surprise this year has been the pineapples. What I have always heard, and have experienced, is it takes two years for a new pineapple plant to produce a pineapple. We had three pineapples last year, and I replanted the tops. I was surprised when in February, I noticed two of the plants setting a fruit! One of them ripened at the end of July and I harvested it.

I cannot begin to tell you how good it was. The second one is smaller, and still hasn't ripened, so we have something to look forward to. Since the 3rd plant didn't set fruit this year, I hope it does in 2022. It would be nice to have at least one homegrown pineapple every year instead of every other year.

The bell peppers have really produced well this year. They are not very large, but I've harvested at least 2 or 3 every week for over a month. They start out a light green, then gradually turn yellow, then orange, then red. The package recommends picking when they are orange. Those that have gone to red have a little heat to them, which isn't bad. The variety is Garden Sunshine and I bought the seeds from Seed Savers in late 2019.

Here's is another bell pepper harvest, and a few small sweet potatoes.

The sweet potatoes are pitiful, aren't they? However, I am thrilled. I had a sweet potato sprout in my pantry last fall, so I stuck it in a pot of dirt. It grew slips, which I pulled off and put in another container. I had 4 or 5 in there, which really was too many, but I was experimenting, to see if it worked.

I finally decided to pull some and see what was happening, and this is the result. The one on the bottom is a half-way decent size. I left two of the plants in there in the hopes that additional room will give any other sweet potatoes the space they need to grow a bit. These I harvested are currently curing and then I'll peel and cook them.

One of my best harvests this summer has been the leaves from the sweet potato plants. I got some from the plants in containers, and some from the slips I put in the ground. Here's how they look:

I wash and remove the leaves from the stem, then chop and sauté in some avocado or olive oil. Spaghetti sauce flares up my GERD, so this summer I've been adding fresh bell peppers, green onions and fresh herbs to the sweet potato leaves, then tossing it with pasta and some parmesan cheese. It is good and I love that much of my meal comes from my small urban garden.

What are you harvesting from your garden right now?

What Should I Plant Next - June 2021

 I got a late start on my garden this year. For a variety of reasons, I didn't really begin planting until May.

And in Zone 9b in Florida, that is really late. By the end of June it is usually too hot and too humid for much to grow and produce.

There are a few things that do well. Peppers are one of them, and I have had good luck with sweet peppers every year I have planted them.

I got out my garden journal and my seeds and looked to see what I might still be able to plant for the summer, then consider what would be better to wait until August/September to plant for the fall.

How is your garden growing?