“ HowToGrowLettuceMicrogreensFastAndEasy”

Kevin Enspiritu

*FULL TRANSCRIPT*

Hosted By Marjory Wildcraft www.TheGrowNetwork.com

2

© 2019 Copyright The Grow Network / Grow Your Own Groceries. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this report may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any informational storage or retrieval system without the express written, dated, and signed permission from the author. DISCLAIMER AND/OR LEGAL NOTICES: The information presented herein represents the view of the author as of the date of publication. The author reserves the right to alter and update his/her views for any reason and at any time. This report is for study and discussion purposes only. While every attempt has been made to verify the information provided in this report, neither the author nor his affiliates/partners assume any responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, or omissions. Any slights of people or organizations are unintentional. If advice concerning legal or related matters is needed, the services of a fully qualified professional should be sought. This report is not intended for use as a source of legal or accounting advice. You should be aware of any laws that govern business transactions or other business practices in your country and state.

NOTICE You do not have the right to reprint or resell this transcript.

You may not give away, sell, or share the content herein.

3

“ HowToGrowLettuceMicrogreensFastAndEasy”

Kevin Enspiritu

Marjory: Hello,andwelcometotheHomegrownFoodSummit.ThisisMarjoryWildcraft.I'myourhostandguide.ThisisbroughttoyoubyTheGrowNetwork,whichisthepremiercommunityofpeoplewhogrowourownfood,andmakeourownmedicine.Ioftengetrequestsforhowtogrowgreens,microgreens,andtheyarefabulous.Iactuallyhavesomegrowingrightonmycountertoprightnow.Ilovegrowingalfalfasprouts,andradishsprouts,andcloversprouts.Itreallyisanamazinghealthfoodbecausethepunchthatyoucangetinnutritionandvibrancyoutofthosesmallgreensisabsolutelyamazing.It'sdefinitelyoneofthe12keysofthingsthatyouwanttodoifyou'rehavingahealthcrisis,orifyoujustwanttokeepmaintainingorimprovingyourhealth.Eatingmicrogreensishuge.

Attheverylastminute,KevinEspiritucamein,andhehadareallygoodpresentationonit.Actually,weweretalkingaboutwow,could...Itwasn'tquiteuptowhatwewanted,butit'sprettygood.AndIsaid,"Youknow,Ijustbeenwantingtogetavideooutongrowingmicrogreensforsuchalongtime.Let'sgowiththis.It'sprettygood."IjustloveKevin'senergyandhisspirit.He'saself-taughturbangardener.He'sfocusedonteaching,andIlovethispart,10millionpeoplehowtogrowtheirownfood.SoKevin,righton,dude.I'mwithyou.He'sdefinitelyaGrowNetworkmember,right?

He'salsotheauthorofTheFieldGuidetoUrbanGardening,whichisaprimmerongettingstartedwithurbanfoodgrowing,saythatfastthreetimes,nomatterhowsmallyouryourlivingspace.AsKevinwillpointouthere,growinggreens,youcandoitanywhere.Youdon'tneedalotofsunlight.Youdon'tneedalotofspace.And,ohmygoodness,thatsaladhemadeattheend.I'mgoingtomakeoneofthosetoo.Okay.WatchthiswithKevin.Ihopeitreallyinspiresyou.

4

Kevin: What'sgoingon,everyone?Asyoucansee,I'mgrowingalittlemicrogreensoverhere.Thesearesomeradishes.AndIfigured,whynottalkaboutamicrogreenthatIactuallyhaven'ttalkedabout,despiteitbeingoneofthemoresimpleonesthatyoucangrow.Andthiswouldbe,ifyoucanseetheseedsthere,abasiclettucesaladmix.So,thingslikeclassiclettuce,somemizuna,someofthebrassicafamily.Mixingthatalltogether,andthenjustgrowingthat.Youcangetadeliciousmicrosaladinanywherefrom10to14days.Soeasytogrow,doesnotrequireanysoaking,andthemaintenanceforthisandthegrowingcareisveryeasy.So,let'sgoaheadandgetstarted.

Thefirstthingthatwe'regonnatalkaboutishowmuchtouse.Idon'tknowifyoucansee.Ihavealittlewineglasshere.But,thisisaboutanounce.AndwhatI'vefoundisthatforsmallseeds,seedsinthe,let'ssayhalfmillimeterdiameter,youdon'tneedmorethananounce,andyoureallydon'tneedlessthananounce.Becauseanylessandyouhaveaverysparselookingtray,anymoreandthey'reclumpingoneachotherandthey'regettingintheway.Andthenthesupermicroclimate,oryoumightevencallitananoclimate,getsreallyhumid,andthat'sarecipeformold,whichisthenumberoneproblemyou'reprobablygonnahavewhenyou'regrowingmicrogreens.So,withthislettucemix,let'sgoaheadandprepareourtray.

Now,whenitcomestosoil,I'vetalkedaboutthisinmanyofmyothermicrogreenvideos,butyoudon'tneedanythingwithalotofnutrition.Becausetheplant'snotgrowinglongenoughtoreallypullanynutritionfromthesoil,soyouwantalight,friablemixture,thatdoesn'thaveatonofdifferentclumpsandclodsandthingslikethat.YoucanseeI'vescreenedthisthroughone-fourthinchchickenwire,althoughyoudon'tneedtodothat.Youcouldactuallyjustbuyaseedstartingmix.

WhatI'vefoundasfarasgettingitinthetrayniceandmoistened,isactuallyifyouputyourwaterinfirst,you'reinabettersituation.So,Iliketodoaboutfourcupsofwater,andifyou'reusinganicewicking,waterretainingmaterial,thenit'snotabigdealtoaddthewaterinatthebottom.Ifyou'reusingsomethingthat'salittletoolight,what

5

you'llfindisthatitactuallyfloatsonthetop,anditdoesn'treallygetwet.Thatcanbealittlebitofanissue.ButwhatI'vefoundis,thisdoesn'treallycauseanyproblemsatall,aslongasyou'vegotthatrightmixture.

Now,theonethingthat'simportanthereis,again,youcanuseascheapingredientsasyouwant.Youcangrowthisinpurecoconutcoirifyou'dlike,andthatcanbeextremelycost-effective,whenyouarebuyingthosedehydratedbricks.WhatI'vefoundisalotofpeoplewilllikethat.Theonethingyoucanrunintothereisthatitisalittlemoisture-retentive.Itcanbe,sometimes,alittlebittoowater-retentive,andyoucangetsomeofthosemoldissuesifyoudon'tcontrolforthat.Sojustwatchoutforthat,ifyouaregrowingincoconutcoir.

Thisisamixtureof,asyoucansee,alittleperlite,alittlecompost,andsomejuststandardpottingsoilthatIfiltereddown.Thewickingaction'sgonnamoistenallofthisforus.Allweneedtoreallydoisflattenthisout.We'regonnagiveitalightmistbeforeweapplyourseeds,andthenwe'regoingtotamptheseedsdown,makesurethattheyallhavecontactwiththesoil.Thenwe'reputtingourblackoutdomeon,andwe'llbebacklaterontoseehowthey'regrowing.

Allright.Sowehaveourseeds.Butthefirstthingwewanttodoismakesurethatwemoistenthismaterialjustslightly,sothattheseedshavesomethingtosticktoassoonastheyhit,sowedon'thaveanyseedbouncing.Yougettheseweirdpocketsofseedsthatdon'treallyhelpyouout.So,we'vegotitniceandmoist.ThenIliketojuststartfromacorner,workmywaydown,andkindofgoinwhateverpatternworksforyou.Therealimportantparthereisthatyouhaveevencoverage.Itdoesn'tnecessarilymatterthewaythatyoudoit,aslongasyouhavenice,evencoverage.Thelastthingyouwanttodoishaveweirdlittlepocketsofseedsthatwillallgerminateintheexactsameplace,andwillcausepulling,clumping.They'llcauseprobablymoldissues,ifyou'renotcarefulwithwatchingthat.Andso,Ijustliketogocareful,goslow,makesurethatIgettherightamount.

6

Fromthere,youcankindofjustgetasenseofthedensitybythecolorchangeonthesoil.Youknow?It'snotabigdeal.Don'tstress.Iknowthatwhenyou'regrowingmicrogreenssometimes,orplantsingeneral,alotofpeoplewillstressabout,"Ohmygosh,amIdoingitright?"Well,theredefinitelyarewaystodoitwrong.Butit'saprettycheapexperimenthere,andifyoumessup,justcallitgrowingpainsandstartover.Notahugedeal.

Nowthatwe'vedonethat,we'vegotaniceevendistributionhere,atleastasbestaswecan.I'mgonnagiveitonemorelightlittlemist.Andthen,youcanuseanyflatmaterialhere.Ijusthavearandomlittlefloorpanelhere,soI'mjustgonnagiveitalighttap,justtomakesurethattheseedsareactuallyincontactwiththesoil,sotheygerminatecorrectly.Iusedtohaveonethatwasperfectlyfittedtothis,thistray,butdon'thavethatanymore.Notabigdeal,though.Boom.Okay.

Nowthatwehavethat,we'rereadyfortheblackoutdome.Allright.Weareinoursystemnow.Asyoucansee,I'veriggeduplittleLEDshoplight.That'sactuallynotgoingtobenecessary,becausewhatwe'redoingiswe'reblackingthisout.Theblackoutdomeispartiallytoaccountforthefactthatthesearegoingtobegerminatingonthesurfaceofthesoil.Now,youcouldcoverthiswithmaybeaquarter-inchofsoil,andthenmoistenthatdown.Ifindthatitissomewhathelpful.It'snot100%necessary,though.Theblackoutdomedoesquitewellhere.

Forlettuce,we'regonnaleavetheblackoutdomeforthreetofivedays.Everyhalfdayorso,ifyoucanmanagethat,you'regonnacomeinandgiveitanicespray,checkthesurfaceforanymold,andthenreplacethedome.Now,theonlyotherthingImightaddisthatyoucanseehereIhaveaseedlingheatmatrighthere.Iputalinkinthevideodescription,ifthat'ssomethingthatyouwanttopurchase.Ifindthatincolderclimates,itreallydoeshelpspeedupgermination.Butalotofseedsarerelativelytoleranttomanydifferenttemperatureranges,asfarasgerminationgoes.Youshouldbefinerightnow,especiallyifyou'regrowingindoors.Sowe'regonnawait,andwe'llbebackinthreetofivedays.

7

Allright,myfriends.Weareat36hoursonourlettucemixhere.Let'stakeapeekandseeexactlywheretheyareintheprocess,andifit'stimetotaketheblackoutdomeoff.Themomentoftruthhasarrived.Boom.Prettysolidgerminationrateshere.Remember,wecankeepthisunderblackoutforatleasttwomoredays.We'regonnawantmostofthesegreenstogetuptomaybethetwo-inchmarkorso,somewherearoundhere,beforewetaketheblackoutdomeoffandwestartgreeningthemup.

Yougottaremember,it'sasaladmix,sothegerminationrateofalloftheseisactuallyslightlydifferent,whichiswhyitlooksalittlespotty.Someoftheearliergerminatingonesarealluprightnow.SomeoftheotheronesIcansee,ifIlook,havesomeroothairs.They'restarting,butthey'renotallthewaydown,whichiswhywehavetowait,maybe,Iwouldsaytwomoredays,beforewetakeitoffforgoodandstartgreeningitup.

It'sbeenabout,Iwouldsayfourmoredayssincewetookofftheblackoutdome.Thegreensarelookingabsolutelybeautiful.Fulltray,perfectlygreenedup.Andthegreeninghappens,really,inIwouldsayanywherefrom24to36hours.Youstarttoseethoseyellowsturntogreen.Youstarttoseethereal,thetruecoloroftheleafactuallycomeout.Let'stakealookatwhatwe'relookingathere,andthenwe'lltalkabouthowtoharvestthem.Andthenasalittlebonus,IwillshowyouhowIpersonallyusealettucesaladmixmicrointhekitchen.

Theseareabsolutelygorgeous.Wereallyhaven'twaitedtoolong.Wecouldgrowthesemuchlongerifwewantedto.Justsoyouknow,whatyou'relookingtohavehappenifyou'regrowingtheseinamoreproductionway...Let'ssayyou'regrowingthesefor,Idon'tknow,acheforarestaurant,orevenforyourself,ifit'ssomethingyouwant.Letmepulloneouthere.Whatyou'relookingtohaveisthefirstsetoftrueleavestoappear.Letmeputmyhandasabackground.Youcanseethattinylittleleafinthemiddlethere.That'stheonethatyou'rewantingtogrowfor,Iwouldsayprobablytwotothreemoredays,ifyoureallywantedtogetmaximumyieldoutofthis.

8

Becauserightnow,you'relookingattheseedleavesrighthere,andthetrueleafisinthemiddle.Thislookslikeitmightbeakaleorsomethinglikethat.Ican'treallytell.It'sabitsmall.Butthat'sgonnabetheleafstructurethatmostoftheplantis.Thesearetheseedleaves.Eventuallymostoftheseseedleavesaregonnagetconsumedfornutrition,iftheplant'sgrowntoitsfullsize.So,whatyoucoulddoisyoucouldletthisentiretraygrowforperhapstwotothreemoredays,andyou'dgetalittlemoreyield.Certainlyyou'dgetalittlemoreyield.You'dprobablygetahalf-inchmoreofgrowth,andyou'dgetthetrueleavescomingoutonmostofthem.It'snotrequired.

Itreallyisuptoyou.SometimesifI'mtryingtoturnatrayoutquickly...AsIlovinglypetmytrayhere.Trythis.Italsofeelsprettygoodjusttokindofrunyourhandsalongthesurface...ButwhatIliketodosometimesisI'llcomethroughandI'lldoacleancut,andgetanothertrayin.BecausethesearesuchquickgrowersthatI'dratherhavequickerturnover,ratherthanwaitingtiltheabsoluteoptimummoment.However,ifit'syourfirsttimegrowing,Iwouldrecommendwaitinguntilyougetthosetrueleaves.Asyoucansee,likethisoneheredoesn'thaveit.Thetrueleavesaren'tthere,soit'sprobablyanotherdayortwoforthatone.

We'regonnagoaheadandgettotheharvestingnow.Iknowinthepreviousclipyousawmesaying,"Waittwo,threemoredays.You'llgetalotmoreyield,"butIthinkit'stimetoharvest.AndIhonestlywouldn'trecommendusingthechef'sknife.It'sjustwhatI'vegrownaccustomedtoandwhatI'musedto,sothisscarymurder-lookingthingiswhatwe'regonnatakeoverhere.We'lltalkaboutsomeharvestingtechniquesasIslowlymakemywaythroughthistray.Andthenwe'regonnathrowitinsomesalad,andhavealittledinner.

Myrecommendedtechnique...Ayoucansee,thesoillevelisalittlelowerthanthesurface,whichisgreat,becausewe'regonnasacrificealittlebitofthisstem,justtomakesurethatwehavemoreorlessnodirt.BecauseIdon'treallywanttowashthis.Iwanttoworkthisdirectlyintoasaladrightaway.Youknow,whenIusedtoworkwithchefs,theywantedtodothesamething.So,I'mcomingthrough.I'm

9

justbunchingandkindofgraspingthetops,andthenI'mcomingataslightlydownwardangleandjustchoppingthrough.What'sniceaboutdoingitthiswayis,atleastinmyopinion,youcanusetheedgeofthetrayasaleveragepoint,andgetreallynicecutsacrossthewholething.Andjust,boom.Wejustcomethrough,weslice.

I'mnotgrowing,again,forcommercial,soIdon'tcaretoomuchifIget100millionpercent.AndI'mpulling.Don'tdothis.Don'tpull.Ipulledalittlebitout.Idon'tcareifIgetonemillionpercentoftheyieldoutofthetray.I'mokaysacrificingalittlebit,becauseagain,thisendsupgoingintomycompost,thissoilrighthere.Soit'snotahugedealifIhaveatinybitlefthere.Notabigdeal,especiallyifyouletitgrowalittletaller.

Forthoseofyouwhoreallyaren'tafanofthechef'sknifemethod,Ihaveanotherfunnymethodforyou.Ofcourse,youcouldjustusescissors.I'mnotjustdoingthistoberidiculous.Youcouldusescissors,butwe'regonnausesomegrassshears.Imean,thisisagrass.It'sgrowinginamattedformat.It'smoreorlesslikeagrass.Idon'tknowaboutyou,butthatworksprettydarnwelltome,sowearegoingtograssclipthismicrogreenbedrighthere.

Prettygoodharvest,right?Idon'tknowaboutyou,butforonetray,awholecolanderfull,probablysomewherearoundsixtosevenounces...It'sunderyieldifyou'regrowingforproduction,butthesedaysIjustgrowformyself.Iwanttocookformyself.Iwantthesefast.Andtheseedsaresocheap.Whenyou'regrowingaspicylettucemix,orevenjustanytypeoflettucemix,theseedsaresocheapthatyoucanaffordtobealittlemoreliberalwiththem,especiallyifyoubuyinfive,even10poundbags.IfyouknowyoulikethemixlikeIlikethis,whynot?Thepricegoesway,way,waydown,soyoukindofpretendlikeyou'reacommercialmicrogreengrowerjustforyourself,andyougetallthesenutritiousgreens.

I'mabouttogointothekitchen.Ithinkmypotmightbeboiling,orboilingoverrightnow.I'vegotsomeravioliinthere.We'regonnathrowthisintoaquicksalad,andjustenjoyitouthereonthepatio.

10

Allright.Ididn'tactuallyhavesomeofthestuffIwanted,solet'sjusttalkaboutthisrealquick.Simplesalad,especiallywhenyoudosomethingreallyspicylikethis.Iliketocutthespicedownalittlebit.I'mpersonallynotafanofjustone...Evenifit'samix,it'saoverallspiciermix,soIneedtocutthatdown.ThewayIdothatisIaddsomeoliveoil,andthentypicallyIwouldcutafreshlemonandsqueezesomelemonjuiceinthereaswell.Don'treallyhavethat.I'mgonnausethenextbestthing,somesortofredwinevinegar.We'llseehowthatworks.Classicsaltandpepper.It'sreallythatsimple.

That'sprobablyenoughforme.Youcanseewe'vegotatleastfourmorelittlemicrosaladsrightthere,ifnotmore,andthisisjustonetrayofonetypeofmicro,guys.I'mtellingyou,thisstuffisthesecretinurbangardening,inmyopinion.Alotofpeoplejustundervaluethis,andthereisnohumanbeingthatisunabletogrowmicrogreens,I'lljusttellyouthat.Unlessyou'relivingin,like,Plato'scaveorsomething.Unlessyoudonothaveaphysicalhome.Andeven,honestly,ifyou'rehomeless,youcouldgrowmicrogreens.Notadvocatingit.There'sprobablymorethings,morepressingmatterstoattendto,butit'snotimpossible.

We'regonnathrowalittlebitofthisin.Don'tputthatsidein.Youcanhonestly,aslongasyoucutdownthatspicejustalittlebit,youcanthrowinwhateveryouwant.NormallyIwouldgoouttotheherbgarden,throwsomeherbsinhere.Iwouldgetsomeofmybunchingonions.Ijustwanttodothisquickandeasyforyouguys.Ialwaysgoalittlehardontheoliveoil,personally.Giveitaquicklittletoss,incorporation.AnotherprotiponthisissomeshreddedfreshParmesancheese.Oh.Iftheoliveoilcutsdownthespicinessalittlebit,theshreddedParmesanbringsinthecreaminess,andthatishekillercombo,inmyopinion.So,I'drecommendthat.Imightalsothrowsomemushroomsinhere,ifIwasalittlemoreprepared,butthisisjustshowingyouhowtomakeaveryquickmicrosalad.Let'sgoaheadandgetourravioliready,andthenwe'lleat.

Couldn'tresist.Igotsometruffleandporcinimushroomravioli.Wewentalittlebougie.Wewentalittlefancy.Thesearelikeprecooked.It'snothingfancyhere,guys.I'mjusttryingtoshowsomepractical

11

stuffyoucandowithgreens,evenifyou'rejustanormalhumanbeingjustlikeme.Boom.Done.Waitfiveminutes,readytoeat.

Whileourravioliisboiling,howdoyoustorethem?There'salotofways.Thegeneralruleofthumbisstorethemasdryaspossible.Givethemalittlebitofmoisture.Youcanputlikeadamppapertowelthat'sbeenrelativelysqueezedoutofmoisture.Ilikethesekeepfreshbags.Icanputalinkinthedescriptionifyouwant.Reallygoodforpreservingproduce,inmyopinion,andthisissomeproduce.Wedon'twantthistogobad.I'mjustgonnastuffthisinthebag.It'llusuallykeepanywherefromsevento10days.Although,youknow,useitasquicklyaspossible.That'smygeneralruleofthumb.Butdry.Ifyoustoreitwet,itwillmoldout,itwillrotout,anditwillbedisgusting,sodonotstoreitwet.

Therewego.Itisnowtimetogetdownandeatthisthing.Crackmycoconutwater.Fixthecam.Well,thisisprettymuchit,guys.Ifyouwanttoleavenow,probablyagoodtime,becauseI'mjustgonnaberiffingonmicrogreenswhileItastetestthemrightnow.Let'sgoaheadandgivethematry.It'sthemostbasic,barebonesmicrogreenssaladyoucanhave,butit'srefreshing.It'snotgonnagetanyfresherthanthis.Youknow,theseplantsare...Let'ssee,15minutesold,asfarastheirharvestdate.Howisitevergonnagetfresherthanthat?Itisnot.Andthespicinesshasbeencutdownbythatoliveoil,althoughithinksomeshreddedParmesanwouldreallyworkhere.That'swhatIwoulddo,personally.I'dalsoaddsomeotherherbs,someothervegetables,makeitatruesalad.But,absolutelydelicious.

Ijustwanttoshowyouguyshoweasyitistohavefreshproduceatyourhouse,nomatterwhereyoulive.Thisis,yeah,theEpicGardeningheadquarters.Prettybig.Butitdoesn'thavetobe.IdidthiswhenIwasgrowingdowntownSanDiegoinanapartment/condosortofthing,inthemiddleofthecity.Completelypossible.Andjustifyouhaveanyquestions,leavetheminthecomments.Youcouldalwaysgotoepicgardening.comandcheckoutsomeofthemicrogreenstutorialsandgrowguidesIhaveoverthere.Checkoutsomeoftheothermicrogreensvideosonthechannel.

12

Checkoutsomeoftheothervideosonthechannel.Checkoutthepodcasts.There'sthedailypodcast.CheckouttheInstagramcommunity.That'skindofwhereIsharesomeofthebehindthescenesstuff,someofthemorebeautifulgardeningshotsthatyouguysmightknowandlove.

Untilnexttime,guys.I'mgonnakeepenjoyingthis,takeasipofmycocowater,enjoythisdeliciousravioli.I'llseeyouinthenextvideo.Goodluckinthegarden,andkeepongrowing.

Marjory: Okay,that'sawesome.Andifyouclickthatbuttonontherightthere,thatwillgetyouintouchwithKevin.Ithinkhe'sgottherecipethere.He'sdefinitelygotalotofotherreally,reallygreatvideos,andIcertainlywanttohelpKevinwithhisgoalofgetting10millionpeoplegrowingtheirownfood.I'mlike,"Yeah.Righton."TheGrowNetwork'slogo,ornotlogo,butourcatalyzingstatementishomegrownfoodoneverytable.So,wearekindredspiritshere.Andyeah,heisjustsomuchfun.Justsoyoungandbubbly,andIloveit.

Clickonthatbuttontotherightthereandthat'llgetyouintouchwithKevin.Thebuttondownbelowthat,woohoo.Youcanownallofthesepresentationsforthesummit,butmoreimportantly,you'llbesupportingthismovement,andsuperappreciateyourpurchase.So,ifyouclickthatbuttondownbelow,thatwillgetyoutobeabletopurchasethewholeentiresummitpackage.Plus,wedohaveaspecialsweepstakeswithallkindsofreallycoolprizes,andifyoupickthatupnow,you'llautomaticallybeenteredtowinthesweepstakes.ThisisMarjoryWildcraft,andwoo.Let'sgettogetherwithanotherpresentation.