Sunnies and Sunny Disposition

Batch two is up and edible! Delicious! Often the Cotyledon push the hull to their folded tips, and at the right moment, you can see the hull fall off.

I was updating a friend, a long-time organic farmer about my Sunflower Greens.

He restores old farm equipment. His comment was, "Soon, I will need a tractor!"

Now imagine the shoehorn apartment, with barely West light, with a tractor inside!

I have sold 4 ozs. of this batch and have a small order for another oz.

Dilemna, suddenly there are Sunflower Greens available at the Coop, and at Whole Foods!

Ironny, again...I was shopping at Whole Foods, and suddenly my cart was gone! I searched for it and found it, (I tie knots in the bags, instead of using those metal and paper twisties). The only item that had been added to my cart was a package of organic Sunflower Greens! Angels at work again?

I will have to see about getting Organic Certification for my tiny operation, so I can get a price worth the tiny effort! Next batch is planted.

Green Green, it's green Sunflowers

Sunflower Greens! So many Sunflower Greens. My neighbor Paul stopped by and I made him a packet to take home and eat. When he spotted the greens growing in the window, his eyes got real big. He used to eat these in California. He showed the packet to a neighbor, whose friend was over.

By the time I brought some of the greens in to the local store to sell, everybody already knew about it! Excitement and enthusiasm! I have sold three small bags now. My first $6.oo!

The second batch is in the oven, so to speak. Soaked, sprouting, planted, and in the dark for these next two days. Should have these ready by Saturday or Sunday.

My body feels better, I have been eating the Sunflower Greens for five days now. Delicious! It helps keep the system alkaline, as well as good digestive enzymes, vitamins and minerals, chlorophyll!

I have spent lots of money to do this. Bought glass bakeware to plant in. the organic growing mediums, and still need to work out the grow light issue. I do not have enough sunshine in my West facing French Doors.

Growing greens gratefully II

I have germination! A good percentage of germination! I have run out of containers!

The roots on the sunflowers are larger than the original hulls. The cellular division and specialization always fascinates me! I will place these out of the oven today. They are ready for the sun and photosynthesis! Then they will be green! Oh Boy! Oh Boy! I am hungry for things that are good for me.

Sherry says that I will have to market these, I will have so many! Maybe so...Hmmmm....

Growing Greens Gratefully

Happy Day! Today I planted the sunflower seeds to grow greens indoors. I am so happy! It feels so right to me to be planting and tending and loving living things! These will give me protein, flavor, and vitamins and minerals! Preparing and planting them feels like an active prayer.

I have only done this twice, a few years ago, and have watched someone grow these that learned from Anne Wigmore.

Let's see what happens...

The directions on the can were very abbreviated.

1. Soak for 6 to 8 hours. (doesn't seem to be enough for something in such a hard hull, so I soaked for 20 hours). I also soaked about three times the amount I needed this first batch, so had to search for things to grow in.
(Many resource sites are growing in plastic, as was my friend that learned from Ann Wigmore. I felt funny about this, so I searched my brain, and finally decided to try Plexiglass baking pans.
Let's see what happens.)

2. Plant in an inch of soil. Well, how close together can they be? Do I press them into the soil?
Do I cover them with some soil? I may have them too close together.

3. Keep covered, moist and in the dark. Well, having prepared so many, the only place I can
keep all of these for this stage is in the oven. This covered thing makes me think the ready
plastic trays could make life easier!

Should be app. five days from now. Will have to remember to get spinach, and balsamic vinegar.

In addition to the quandary of what to plant these in, is the quandary of grow lites for these and for my African Violets. I do not want fluorescent! Seems like that is all there is out there for grow lights! Fluorescents are bad for me, but are bad for you, also. Most Day Cares are not supposed to use them around the children, I won't subject pets to them, so I won't subject my plants to them, either.

I have found 60 watt full spectrum grow bulbs, but would have to jury rig up the fixture situation. I could use any full spectrum bulbs from Chromolux, but again jury rig the fixtures.
This will all be in my living area, so want it to look nice.

Anybody got a line on a good natural light, or non-fluorescent full spectrum solution?

Green along with me

I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of my tins of organic, unhulled sunflower seeds! Any day now!

I will grow sunflower greens by my window. Sunflower greens to eat. Real local! Real fresh!
These are delicious, and dense with nutrients! I like them on a bed of spinach, along with thinly sliced avacado, topped with toasted sunflower seeds, and dribbled with balsamic vinegar!

I have been enjoying carrot/apple/ginger juice three mornings a week. (organic, of course).

Along with this, I have returned to regular, daily, Super Blue-Green Algae! I can really tell the difference in my IQ and spiffy energy when I take it regularly!

So, I am enthused! I will next week sign back up as a Business Associate with Simplexity Health and Go For It! I love helping people! The Algae is everything! Wish me well, and if you want to know more, and/or try it, contact me, please!

Essential Eating, Essential Life

In the New Year, we have the new start attitude. This leads to lots of promises to ourselves, probably the same one year after year! And, I would wager that losing weight, or eating healthier is the most common promise.

Last year, I connected with Janie Quinn, through my Library work at the New England Small Farm Institute.

Janie has a web site EssentialEating.com. Note that title. Essential! How much of what we put into our mouths, or put our money into is not essential? And...how much essential are we not eating? The website is wonderful! Comforting!

I have been reading her book, 'Essential Eating The Digestible Diet'. In this book, Janie talks about the need to eat sprouted grains and beans, and provides a chart of more easily digestible foods. I won't feed you the whole story right now.

I have included more wild rice into my diet, and decreased the short grain brown a bit. I have been eating multi-grain sprouted breads, which are delicious! I feel better just with this little switch!

Eventually, I will make a healthy pancake batter. I have always eaten many good foods, but now see that even though a food may be high anti-oxident, or high nutrition density, if it is not easily digested...not getting the goodies!

So, this year, I am back to my enzymes from Simplexity Health, the Bifidus for the winter, the Algae, and more wild rice.

I may even get it together to grow the sunflower greens for salads, and toast the sunflower seeds to put on top, with a bit of balsamic vinegar...All Set, and delicious!

I highly recommend checking out Janie Quinn's books, and website!

For the bakers out there, you can get sprouted grain flour from Janie.