Do you get Mold on Sprouts or Fungus on Microgreens? Here is the explanation and solution:

What is mold on Sprouts and fungus on Microgreens?

What are root hairs on Sprouts if not mold?

Which Sprouts and Microgreens form root hairs?

Lack of moisture causes more root hairs on sprouts

Healthy roots on Sprouts and Microgreens

Can you eat root hairs on Sprouts in the food?

Enjoy healthy roots and sprouts in a SproutPearl

It is only certain sprouts and microgreens that get ‘mould’ and ‘mold’ on the roots – the so-called root hairs. They are: Broccoli – Chinese radish – Pink cabbage – Violet radish – Rapeseed – Red cabbage – Mustard – Sunflower + certain varieties of grain.

You can’t control whether a Spire grows root hairs. It is in the genes of the plant. Root hairs are smart because they allow the plant to absorb the bit of moisture that is in the top of the soil.

Other plants have chosen to bet on a single long root without root hairs, which can quickly shoot down to low-lying moisture, after which the long root forms lateral roots. These sprouts are: Fenugreek – Red clover – White clover – Lucerne, on the other hand, has a single root.

The two root types each have a different strategy, both of which are about the plant’s need for water, nutrition and adhesion. Plants just bet differently based on evolution’s success criteria.

In order for your Sprouts and Microgreens to grow into healthy plants, they need a good moisture balance in the sprout box. The container must partly retain the moisture and still allow the plants to get oxygen.

Sprouts are only as healthy as their roots. If you have difficulty achieving a good moisture balance around the roots, I can recommend a SpirePerle tray.

The SpirePearl is a FRESH SPROUT design. I created it in 2017 when I missed a functional and beautiful sprouting container. The tray supports the plants’ needs for oxygen, moisture and drainage on their journey from dry seed to crisp, ready-to-eat plant.

You can grow both the small Sprouts and the larger Microgreens in it.

Yes, you can easily eat its sprouts with ‘moldy’ roots. That is, if you are sure that the mold is root hair – see more above.

The fluffy roots are edible as are all the roots of your sprouts grown in a clean sprout container.

Roots with root hairs may look a little wild, but they are full of plant fiber. They are neutral in taste, which makes them easy to slice for extra filling in recipes with raw greens.

I typically blend root hairs myself into smoothies, dips or spreads. Other times I eat them directly from the sprout tray together with the rest of the sprout.

When I take pictures of Sprouts and Microgreens, I trim and eat the root hairs while styling the setup, as the thin roots tend to turn brown quickly in dry air.

Sprouts and Microgreens are full of natural vitamins, minerals, enzymes, proteins, antioxidants, plant fibers, chlorophyll and vitality.

Your homegrown sprouts and microgreens are also low-calorie and contain very low fat. Therefore the little plants can support your body’s natural balance and health.

Homegrown Sprouts are very sustainable food because:
Dry seeds weigh only 1/15 of cultivated sprouts, so transport of seeds mean less CO2. Also you only grow the Sprouts when you need them, so there is no food waste. And Sprouts do not require soil, fertilizer, extra light or heat to grow.

The bigger Microgreens need a little liquid fertilizer and 8-14 hours of artificial lighting from day 5 and until you harvest these bigger plants.

Sprouts and Microgreens pretty much tend to themselves. All you have to do is calmly rinse them twice a day for 10-15 seconds each time.

This easy daily ritual will give you a little time to breathe deeply. A break you can use to also give yourself a little water and a loving thought. This is why growing your own Sprouts and Microgreens is so peaceful and healthy for your mind.

When you grow your own Sprouts and Microgreens from organic sprouting seeds, you know that your food is free from chlorine, pesticides and soil bacteria.

You also know, that your home-grown plants have been rinsed with the water, you feel safe for otherwise drink yourself. Another plus is that they are completely fresh as these small plants are growing right up until you eat them. So as a sprout cultivator, you can feed your body with pure, living food.

Sprouts from Peas, Lentils, Mung bean, Adzuki and Chickpea are rich in plant protein.

Because sprouts are living plants, the proteins are easy to digest for your body.
An extra plus is that as you eat your sprouts raw, you do not use electricity to cook them. And as you eat the sprouts raw, they are alcaline in your body as all fresh, raw greens.

It is fun to grow your own Sprouts and Microgreens.

There is something fascinating about growing your own food. By the way, some Sprouts like Peas, Lentils and Mung beans are so fast and easy to grow that even children will have a sure success in cultivating them.
This makes especially Sprouts a fun pleasure for both small and large plant lovers.

Sprouts and Microgreens provide natural energy to your body as they are full of vitamins, minerals, protein, antioxidants and plant fibre.

When you cultivate your sprouting beans, lentils and seeds instead of boiling them, these nutrients are kept intact in the sprout or plants. That is because vitamins, antioxidants and amino acids are heat-sensitive. So by eating Sprouts and Microgreens you can get lots of natural energy.

In this article about sprouts in all dishes, I explain:

How do you use Sprouts in food?

Sprouts as healthy snacks

Sprouts in fresh juices

Sprouts in green smoothies

Where do you find the Seeds?

Sprouts in dips, spreads & hummus

Sprouts in any salads

Sprouts in soup, wok and oven dishes

Sprouts are delicious in all dishes where you would otherwise use salad and fresh greens.

Fresh sprouts will give you the most nutrition when you eat them raw. It can be in juice, smoothies, dips, salads, sandwiches or as a fresh garnish on any dish.

You can also use sprouts in warm or hot dishes in the pot, oven and wok. It can be in soups, wok dishes, oven dishes or casseroles. The trick here is to add the sprouts just before serving, so that they retain their crispness and nutrition despite the heat.

You can also leave sprouts as pure snacks…but you will soon find out when you taste the delicious, crispy sprouts yourself.

Sprouts are a delicious mouthful for both adults and children. You will definitely find out when you first enjoy the taste of completely fresh, crisp sprouts.

I myself love to eat green pea sprouts as snacks. I found them especially delicious when the white root is 1-1.5 cm long. But each to their own taste. Some love the slightly bitter peas with a shorter root. Others prefer the sweeter taste when the root is longer and the transparent shell has fallen off.

But you can also enjoy many other sprouts as snacks. Sunflower and Lucerne are other favorites of mine.

If you want ‘real’ snacks, you can instead fry sprouted chickpeas with coconut oil and spices to your taste.

RECIPES WITH SNACKS

Your sprouts are delicious in juice, which you either squeeze yourself or buy ready-made.

You make home-pressed juice with sprouts by using the sprouts just like any other ingredient. To get the most juice out of the sprouts, you can wrap a lettuce leaf around them before putting them in the juicer.

You can make ready-squeezed juice with sprouts in two ways:
1) You can blend the sprouts into the juice and get a thicker, more filling juice.
2) You can use your whole sprouts for a nice, edible garnish in the juice.

RECIPES WITH JUICES

Sprouts are delicious in smoothies. On the one hand, they are fresh and full of nutrition, but they are also full of plant fiber for the pleasure of your stomach.

I personally prefer to use the mild sprouts such as Pea, Sunflower, Lucerne, Red Clover and White Clover in my smoothies. Because the sprouts are almost neutral in taste, they are easy to fit into any smoothie.

If you exercise a lot and need extra protein, you can use red and green lentil sprouts, pea sprouts or mung bean sprouts in your smoothies instead. These 4 sprouts are particularly rich in green proteins and plant fibres…and of course a lot of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants like all the other sprouts.

RECIPES WITH SMOOTHIE

Sprouts do well in both dips, spreads and hummus. In all three recipes, you can use the sprouts in two ways:

1) You can blend the sprouts into dips and spreads, so that the sprouts contribute to flavor and texture.

2) You can let the sprouts decorate your dips and spreads. If you do this, very young and short sprouts, which have only just shown their leaves, will be most beautiful.

If you only have long sprouts, you can possibly cut the sprouts a little below the leaves and use it for decoration while you blend stems and roots into your dip or spread.

RECIPES WITH DIPS

Sprouts are obvious to use in all your salads.

You will quickly discover that your home-grown sprouts can be used as an ingredient or as a beautiful decoration in any salad.

As an ingredient, you can replace lettuce leaves with lucerne, sunflower sprouts or clover sprouts. You can also replace some vegetables with sprouts, such as radishes with radish sprouts or arugula topping with arugula sprouts.

Do you love spicy dressings? Then you can top it off with fenugreek sprouts, mustard sprouts or endive sprouts. The possibilities are many, so try yourself.

RECIPES WITH SALADS

Sprouts are good in soup as a fiber-rich filling or garnish.

The best sprouts to use as a filling in soup are lentils, peas, mung bean and chickpea sprouts. The sprouts are strong and rich in proteins and plant fibres. They therefore add delicious richness to the soup.

If you would like to have sprouts as a crisp and crunchy filling in soups, you should use them either in cold or warm soup. If you use sprouts in hot soup, you can wait to add the sprouts until just before serving the soup. This is how the sprouts retain their crispness best.

If you want a nice garnish on soup, most sprouts will work, as long as the taste matches the soup.

RECIPES WITH SPROUTS

Food with sprouts stays fresh in the same way as if the food contained other types of fresh leaf lettuce. Food with sprouts therefore does not go bad faster than food with fresh salad. Their durability is the same.

Similarly, the durability of dishes with sprouts will be shorter, the warmer or more prepared the sprouts are for the dish. If you have blended, chopped or heated the sprouts, the dish will have a shorter shelf life than if you made a salad with whole, raw sprouts.

If you have used raw, whole sprouts and let them keep a little of the root, they will actually keep growing ever so slowly in your dish. Serving whole unchopped sprouts gives them a very long shelf life, even if you save the salad for the next day.

What are Sprouts and Microgreens?

Why use Sprouts and Microgreens in food?

How to grow Sprouts in 2-6 days

Can you eat raw Sprouts and Microgreens?

Can you eat whole Sprouts and Microgreens?

How do you get the most nutrition from Sprouts?

How do you use Sprouts and Microgreens in food?

Can you slice, chop and blend Sprouts?

Sprouts and Microgreens in various dishes

Sprouts of Lentils, Chickpeas and Mung beans must have at least ½ – 1.5 cm long roots. Then you can eat them raw. This is because legumes contain lectins which are neutralized as they develop their roots.

Leafy sprouts – i.e. Broccoli, Radish, Sunflower, Endive, Clover, Rapeseed, Pink Cabbage etc. – do you grow normally until they unfold their leaves and the leaves have color. In principle, you can eat them already from the time their root is 1 cm long, but you get a much better taste and yield by letting them grow until they have unfolded their leaves.

The last group is Peas, Fenugreek and Corn. You can eat the three either with 1 cm of root or when they have grown leaves.

Your sprouts are at their peak nutritionally when they have reached the recommended length you can read on the seed bag. That is, for lentils, chickpeas, peas and beans, it is a 1-3 cm long root. For leaf sprouts, it is when the leaves have turned colour. For Microgreen, it is when the plants have developed 1-2 sets of true leaves.

Like fresh lettuce, Sprouts and Microgreens keep best as long as they have just a little bit of root. It’s incredible to think about, but your microplants will continue to grow in the salad or lunch box as long as the plant is intact.

Like all greens, the nutrition of the small plants begins to oxidize as soon as you chop, mash and blend the plants. If you therefore do not eat your sprouts whole, you get the most nutrition from sprouts by eating them shortly after cooking.

Are you curious to learn more?

I have created a Free Step by Step Video Guide The guide briefly explains how to grow your sprouts and gives you a quick start.

If you want to learn much more, I have written a book with everything about sprouts. The book FRESH SPROUTS A Guide to Sprouting is an A-Z with everything about your sprouts. With the book, all sprouts will be successful for you, because you will learn to understand the needs of your little plants day by day.

SPROUTS OR SEEDLINGS

If I should be completely technically correct a ‘sprout’ is only the little white tip, which grows out of your sprout seed and eventually develops leaves at the end.

A seed may thus ‘sprout’. It is not ‘a sprout’. Not even when the plant gets bigger. Scientifically the right name for such a little plant is ‘seedling’.

SPROUTS – A LOVING TITLE

So why do I call the whole group of small plants ‘sprouts’ at this portal, in my videos, books and shop?

This is because ‘sprouts’ is an easy and affectionate name which sprout growers has embraced since sprouting became popular many years ago.

So technically today the name cover all types of homegrown miniplants grown in boxes without soil, fertilizer or artificial light.

WHAT DO SPROUTS GROW FROM?

Sprout cultivation is possible because sprouts grow only on the nourishment that is stored in the seeds. The plants therefore neither need fertilizer nor soil.

This means that you only have to rinse the seeds and sprouts with fresh tap water twice a day. Nature takes care of the rest!

For this reason the small plants do not even need much light. They grow fine in the little light that is in a shady corner of your kitchen. This all makes sprout cultivation easy and hygienic.

WHAT CAN YOU SPROUT?

You should not just sprout any seed you come across.

Some seeds, lentils, beans and peas are not suitable for sprout cultivation as they contain certain toxins – for example lectins in beans and lentils.

An easy rule of thumb is only to grow sprouts of varieties that are sold specifically for sprout growing from professional suppliers, that you can see knows about sprouting.

Alternatively, you can find a complete list of 44 suitable sprout varieties in my book FRESH SPROUTS – a guide to sprouting.