How To Grow Sunflower Sprouts (Tasty + Nutritious Microgreens for Winter)
Big. Bold. And Scrumptious!
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It may come as a big surprise, but sunflowers – yes those same seeds that create huge yellow flowers, tasty snacks, and bird food – make incredible microgreens.
Easy to grow and easy to harvest, sunflower sprouts are one of my favorite microgreens because they are BIG and taste like nothing else. Big is key because it is so easy to get the volume you need for a nice salad or some serious greens in your sandwich, wrap or pita.
Let’s take a look at how to grow sunflower sprouts and why these awesome microgreens need to be your go-to this winter for better health.
Sunflower Seeds for Sprouting
All varieties of sunflower seeds are edible. That means you don’t have to fret about finding the “right” variety to grow sprouts from. Still, some varieties produce HUGE seeds while others produce very small seeds. The choice is still yours, but the larger seed varieties will result in bigger sprouts.
There are many ways to source sunflower seeds for sprouting. All you need is whole, untreated, unroasted seeds and you are good to go.
You can buy sunflower seeds specifically for microgreens. These tend to be the most expensive option. In Canada such “specialty” sunflower seeds can sell for $20-$40 per kilogram when labeled as “sunflower microgreens”. Ouch!
But you can simply use any source of whole fresh seeds that you can find (yes even from bird seed – just wash it first!). A good quality black oil seed birdseed might cost only $3 to $5 per kilo. This is typically the same stuff as the expensive brands - so you choose.
Better still, you can simply save the seeds of sunflowers that you grow yourself. Hands down, this is the cheapest option for free food for your winter supper! All you need to do is wait until the seeds are mature (usually the flower caps start to fall off and reveal the dark seeds underneath), and then pop the seeds out of the flower and dry them away from direct sources of heat. Store in a clean, dry container and you have seed ready to use for sprouting. Sunflower sprouts are perhaps the be best reason to learn to save your own seeds!
As an added bonus, a little sunflower seed goes a long way. Just 1 cup of sunflower seeds is going to yield about 12 cups of sprouts! So unless you are feeding a family, you can use much smaller amounts on a continuous grow cycle to make a fantastic additions to your daily meals.
How To Grow Sunflower Seed Sprouts
Microgreens are incredibly simple to grow. You can easily grow microgreens anywhere – even in an apartment.
You don’t need any fancy equipment to grow sunflower seeds. Any flat container that can hold one or two inches of soil will work just fine. You can use those aluminum food storage sets that you can pick up in the grocery store, or simply recycle flat plastic containers. If you want to grow big volumes of sunflower sprouts, then the standard seed trays from garden centers work great. Just make sure there are some holes in the bottom of whatever container you choose to allow excess water to drain away.
The only tricky part of growing sunflower microgreens is figuring out how much seed to plant at one time. It is definitely better to grow an amount of sprouts that you will harvest within 2-3 days. So choose the size of your container based on how much you want over 2 or 3 days for meals. You want to sow the seeds in a way that they cover the soil surface of your container well. This will give you a dense mat of sprouts at harvest time. I usually sow 1/4 to 1/2 cup of sunflower seeds at a time, and that is plenty for me.
It takes roughly 7 to 12 days to go from seed to harvestable sprout. To keep a continuous harvest of sprouts available, sow a new container every 3 to 4 days.
Steps For Growing Sunflower Sprouts:
1) Choose a clean, flat container and make sure it has some drain holes in the bottom
2) Add 1-2 inches of quality potting soil evenly in the container
3) Soak your sunflower seeds for 4-8 hours (so overnight is ideal)
4) Drain the soaked seeds and spread them in a thick, even layer over the soil
5) Lightly cover the soaked seeds with soil so that you no longer see the seeds
6) Water thoroughly with warm water
7) Cover the tray with a humidity dome. If you don’t have one, use a plastic bag to make a tent over your container to help hold in moisture. [Note: You will want to leave the humidity dome in place for about 3 to 4 days until you see good germination in your container.]
7) Here is where the steps vary! You can:
Place the tray in a sunny window or light table.
If you have limited window space, you can actually leave your containers in a warm dark space for the first 4 days. Once you can visibly see sprouts poking through, then you can move the container to a window sill or light table.
8) Water your sprouts as needed, about every 4 days. If you are not seeing sprouts in about 4 days, you may need to add a seed heating mat under your containers to boost germination rates.
9) Harvest your sprouts with scissors to avoid getting dirt along with your sprouts.
10) Rinse your sprouts lightly in a colander with running water, drain, pat dry and use in your favorite recipe.
Nutritional Benefits of Sunflower Sprouts
Microgreens are packed with nutrients and sunflower seed sprouts are no exception. Sunflower sprouts have anti-hypertension properties that rival ginseng! The nutritional benefits of eating sunflower seed sprouts include (source):
Linoleic acid, which reduces total and LDL cholesterol, improves insulin sensitivity and improves blood pressure – source).
Phytochemical compounds including caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeoylquinic acid, cynarine, gallic acid which are important anti-oxidants and blood sugar stabilizers (source).
Flavonoids such as heliannone, quercetin, luteolin, and kaempferol, which reduce the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure. Flavonoids are bioactive, antioxidant and antibacterial in nature (source).
Pigments like chlorophyll, carotene, and xanthophyll, which have antioxidant properties that are protective from cancer and heart disease (source).
Vitamins like vitamin A, B, C, and E
Minerals like calcium, iron, magnesium, and phosphorus
All told, this means that sunflower sprouts have bioactive properties that include antioxidant and antibacterial properties. They are an excellent dietary addition for anyone looking for anti-inflammatory and anti-hypertensive foods.
How To Use Sunflower Microgreens
Harvesting sunflower sprouts is easy peasy. Just snip with some scissors, give them a light rinse and you are good to go.
Eat sunflowers raw in salads, sandwiches and wraps.
Or, because sunflowers are robust sprouts with a much sturdier form than most sprouts you may think of, they make an excellent addition to stir-fry, soups and stews without losing their texture. They are also a great fresh garnish on your favorite pasta dish.
Enjoy Scrumptious Sunflower Sprouts
The magic of sunflower seed sprouts is that you can grow a big tasty sprout in just over a week and add it to your favorite meal with little to no effort at all. When it comes to food magic, sunflower sprouts are as magnificent as their big yellow flowers.
If you are looking to cut down on your food costs, while boosting your health and nutrition, then growing sunflower seeds into sprouts is a clear winner on all fronts.
Try some this winter and feel the difference these greens can have on your health and wellbeing, and your pocket book.
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