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Thursday, April 6, 2023

The Experiment That Failed


Remember the watercress seeds I started on a damp paper towel-lined plate? Well, they did sprout, and they did begin to grow. And then they only got leggy and the leaves never really grew. Others have done this successfully, so I must have missed something with my seeds. 

Perhaps they didn't get enough light through the window. Or perhaps they needed to be kept more moist. I did have trouble keeping ups with daily sprinkling with water. Perhaps I should have kept the plate covered with a clear plastic bag. So many perhaps. 

I'll try again some other time. For now, chock this failure up to experience. And now I know how not to grow watercress sprouts.

We do know what's not on our Easter dinner menu -- sprouted watercress.  Have a happy Easter, friends.

8 comments:

  1. I'm trying a new thing for me with sprouting seeds. I'm practicing for a STEM program I'm going to lead for kids at the library. I have a wet paper towel in a sealed sandwich bag with some bean seeds in it, and that is taped to a window. That gives it good light and keeps the moisture in and is a good visual for the development of a plant from a seed. I had one sprout after just a day. I plan to start a new batch every week, so I can have various stages of development to show. We'll see how it goes.

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    1. That's such a good idea. Usually we've sprouted in jars, maybe I can use gallon sized bags to sprout in larger batches. Do you seal the bag completely or keep partially open?

      Laura

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    2. Seal the bag completely. That way it acts like a little gree house. You can see the condensation on the inside to know if you need to add a little water or not. As the seeds grow, you can open the top to let them grow out. But at that point it's probably time to put them in to pots, unless you want to eat them as sprouts. I haven't done this, but I saw someone who had dirt in a bag on a window seal who was growing radishes.

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    3. Thank you for the tips!! We grew our sprouts with a netting cover and probably watered too much. We thought the sprouts needed air but maybe not so much at that stage of growth. Growing in soil might be interesting too if sprouts are difficult to grow.

      Laura

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  2. At least you tried something new! My husband has seeds in milk jugs on our back patio right now. He hasn't experimented with this before so it will be interesting to see what happens. Sounds like lots of people are trying ways to extend the growing season.

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    1. I did the milk jug thing last year, starting them in the cold weather outside in capped milk jugs. (I cut them open part way, so I could plant and then sealed them back up.) That way the plants didn't have to be hardened off before planting. It worked well for me. I did broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower.

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    2. That's where I had heard about it before! Now I remember!

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  3. Locally watercress are grown in pond farms. We haven't bought watercress in a long while because the prices are outrageous. I miss the spicy addition it gives to a salad. Goes especially well with canned fish, like salmon, andtomatoes. I may try this indoors. I read it is advisable to use only sprouting seeds since it has been treated to kill bacteria like E. Coli. If we wash the seeds before and the grown sprouts extremely well, will there be less risk? Or is the bacteria in the seeds and sprout structure?

    Have a nice Easter weekend everyone,
    Laura

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