This past fall, as I was cleaning up the winter garden, Charlie was building a greenhouse. It was a spontaneous construction. We never talked about a greenhouse. I have been using a coldframe to grow some winter greens. But an entire greenhouse!? Now that Charlie had unleased his creative power, it was time to unleash mine.
In this family Charlie is head cook, but I am the salad maker. For a big part of the year I can harvest a bountiful mix of greens from the garden or supplement from the local market.
We often buy sprouts, such as sunflowers and broccoli, to add to salads. They have the reputation as mini nutritional powerhouses and I’ve always been interested in growing them. The greenhouse has now become my microgreen laboratory, where I am playing and learning about and experimenting with sprouts and also growing baby salad greens, including spinach, which has always eluded me in the garden.
It turns out that growing microgreens isn’t that hard if you have the right conditions. The trick is finding the right balance of light, water, and heat, and Charlie rigged the greenhouse so that I have control over all those things, including a shade cloth if it gets too hot. It’s surprising how hot the greenhouse can get on a sunny day, even when the outside temperatures are low.
So far I’ve had good success with sunflowers, peas, broccoli, and kale. I’m harvesting baby spinach, lettuce, and arugula to mix in with the microgreens.
Our nightly salads have taken on new tastes and textures, and we’ve been throwing sprouts on and in everything. My latest favorite is a quick sauté of pea sprouts in a little butter, garlic and salt. Goes good with eggs.
