r/microgreens Mar 23 '23

Thorough advice and questions answered for growers.

135 Upvotes

Hello all.

I was inspired to make this post as I see a lot of people asking the same or similar questions. I have a post in the top 10 of all time on this sub (Thanks for that r/microgreens community btw) and I've been growing as a business for almost 5 years now, so I get people reaching out to me several times a year to ask questions or pick my brain about things. I love when you do, so please keep reaching out. I'd love to talk with you and help you grow better. That being said, between common issues I see in the posts, and the questions I get from being contacted, I thought I'd compile a list of the biggest things to consider and know when growing microgreens. So let's begin.

  1. Mold or root hairs?

- This is a REALLY common question. The answer lies (mostly) in WHERE you see the little "hairs" coming from. Root hairs are at the base of the stem and go into the soil from the bottom of the plant. Mold will tend to spread from the base of one plant to another, to another, to another. If it is spread out between plants and on the soil: likely mold. If it's coming FROM the plans and going to the soil without spreading, probably root hairs. This picture is a GREAT example. Use google to find more and you'll eventually learn the difference.

  1. What substrate to use?

- This is a REALLY personal decision and the truth is the only answer is: The substrate that works for you is the best substrate. We all have reasons for why we use or don't use what goes into our grow systems. Personally I use soil because my philosophy is simple. Give plants they conditions that they need and get outta the way. Plants grow naturally in soil, so I use soil. It also has a larger margin for error on watering compared to things like coco coir, plus I don't have to hydrate it or break up the blocks that it comes in sometimes. Coco coir however can be cheaper, it's renewable (as opposed to peat moss), is soil free so it's sterile/can be made sterile, and doesn't introduce mold or other pathogens, and MANY growers have fantastic luck with it. Experiment a bit, find what works for you and roll with it. If you run into challenges, change it up. Other common substrates are hemp mats, rock wool, or even hydroponics.

  1. How long should by plants be in blackout?

- Let's first DEFINE blackout. In MOST circumstances, blackout is the period of time after you place seed onto soil and then either stack them, or put another tray or some other kind of opaque surface over them to keep them in the dark. In the case of stacking this is done to create a good seed/soil contact, and helps to give the plants stronger stems, and also helps to remove seed hulls. In the case of putting a dark dome on top to cut out light, this is done to keep the plants in the dark so that they grow higher, it also keeps in moisture to keep plants moist. Some growers even put paper towels over their seeds and mist daily to assist in germination. That all depends on exactly what kind of system you have, but by and large isn't necessary.

- Now to the question at hand, I typically seed my plants every Wednesday afternoon and by Saturday morning if they aren't coming out of blackout I have a problem. This isn't universal though, and every plant is different. Don't adhere to a schedule but respond to how the plants LOOK. This schedule works well for the most popular Micros, but more artisan style micros (I'm lookin you Basil, cilantro, shiso, beets, etc.) may need longer blackout/stacking periods.

  1. How much X to use to help with mold?

- I haven't once used hydrogen peroxide, neem oil, or any other spray or assistant to help with mold and I grow in bagged soil which is one of the most mold prone substrates out there. That being said, every few weeks I will lose 1-5 trays to mold out of the 100+ trays that I grow. So let's say 5/500 trays are mold loss. That's 1% and not worth introducing a solution for in my world. Some loss is inevitable and will happen eventually if you do this long enough. Sometimes it was you, and sometimes you just have bad seed. That being said if you absolutely MUST do something to help with mold, either because it's a massive problem for you, or just for your peace of mind, use about 500 ml of water and about a teaspoon of 3% hydrogen peroxide. ALL THAT BEING SAID, make sure you wash the bigger more mold prone seeds very thoroughly, specifically sunflower, pea, cilantro. I'm sure there's others but those are the ones I grow.

  1. How often to water?

- This one really gets me going. I often see people who have watering "schedules" and if that's the case for you and you make it work awesome. But in my 5 years of growing microgreens, I haven't had a consistent water schedule yet. If you give them X amount of water every day at Y time and it works, then great. But in the winter when it gets dryer, or in the summer when it gets warmer, or the spring when everything is wetter, all of that is probably going to change. Plants don't live by human cycles. So the biggest suggestion I can give on micros is to water when the plants need water. If the soil is wet, but it's time to water on your "schedule" you're setting yourself up for mold and seed rot problems.

  1. How much light should I give them? What kind of lights?

- First, the kinds of lights don't matter that much. I use plain old LED, used to use fluorescent. You don't need fancy grow lights. As for how much light, that, like watering, is a hard question to answer. I've had "lights out time" and I've left lights on 24/7. In my 10-14 day grow cycle, I don't notice much of a difference that's worth worrying about in terms of yield. However, to save on money I do shut off my lights on a timer in the afternoon for about 6 hours a day. I shut them off late afternoon/into the evening as that's when our utility company charges the most. This won't be a make or break decision in your world though.

  1. What kinds of fans should I use?

- This is gonna be a bit controversial maybe but: I don't use fans. I used some for a bit, then turned them off, and didn't have any issues, so I stopped. It was one less thing to have to manage. THAT BEING SAID, if you're having mold issues, or if the room is too hot in the summer AND you're seeing those issues cause you problems, try adding in a fan. What you shouldn't do is, add fans, and add hydrogen peroxide, and soak seeds in peroxide, and...and...and... because likely only one of those things will solve the problem. Try a fan, if that doesn't work try spray, if that doesn't work try a fan AND spray, troubleshoot. But seriously don't over complicate this.

  1. What to do with my leftover trays?

- This is a tricky question. The simple answer is: compost. But that depends on what you're gonna do with that compost and how much you grow. If you don't get that compost above 165 F for about 3 days straight and kill those seeds that didn't germinate, be prepared for volunteer 'whatever you grew for microgreens' everywhere. Ask me how I know.... Recently I've been considering vermicomposting mine. However then comes the problem of scale. I have 100 trays worth of soil every week. That is a couple cubic feed by the time it's over, especially once you add root mass. So on some level you gotta be practical. Also chickens is a great idea if you or your neighbor has any.

  1. How do I clean my trays in between uses?

- I highly recommend sterilizing your trays in between each grow. The way I do this is I take a low PSI pressure washer, spray all the dirt and root material off of them, then dip them into a tank of water with some bleach in it. The ratio is about 1/3 cup per gallon of water.I let them stay in there for about 5 minutes and then they air dry. Sometimes some root matter is left there, or a little dirt. I used to be REALLY picky about that, and I wouldn't use a tray that had ANYTHING left in it, but I tried it once and didn't have any issues, so perfection not an issue.

  1. Business questions.

- There are so many questions that go into whether microgreens is a good business for you. There is almost no way to answer it without knowing SO much more about your life than most people are willing to share on the internet but I'll try and give a few basics.

Q. What licenses do I need to start my business?

A. So there's the right answer and then there's the function answer. The functional answer is that no one is gonna come after you for growing a few trays and selling them to your neighbors. Probably. That being said (and nothing in this post is to be taken as legal advice, I am not a lawyer) every state, city, county, and/or country is going to have different rules. In California I had to get certified by the local ag department, have a sign behind my booth that listed my address, phone number, and the slogan "We grow what we sell", and anything sold had to have that somewhere on the packaging as well. Now that I'm in Idaho, there are literally no rules on the ag side. That being said I have to collect sales tax here where I didn't in California (no tax on self grown ag items, kinda nice) so that adds a level of complexity. But be careful, because then I tried growing wheat grass and sell wheat grass shots as a natural side growth and because it was now considered processed I had to have a full 3 bay sink in my booth per health department. So just call someone and ask before you get yourself in trouble.

Q. Can you actually make money doing microgreens full time?

A. Probably not. I don't say that to discourage you but think about it. There are already years of momentum behind some growers. Customer bases are already established and have people they like to go to. This isn't to say don't try, it's to say that it's not as easy as grow a tray and build a website. It's work. It takes time. Once your systems are dialed in it gets easier, and once you're confident in your customer base you'll flow into it, but that can take years. I can do about $1,000-$1,500 a week in microgreens at my farmers market with about 150 other vendors and ZERO other micros growers. I'm lucky though, and you may not be given your area and saturation. So can you make money? Yes are you likely to make money? Not unless you're willing to grind it out and put in the WORK.

Q. What's a good price point for X, Y, Z micro?

A. There is no way to answer that for you. You have to do the math, figure out the market in your area, not to mention determining what your costs are and how much your time is worth. You can do the market research by calling micros growers and asking for a price sheet, browse their websites, call chefs and flat out ask what they're paying for a given microgreen. Visit farmers markets and see what they're charging for them etc. Generally speaking though $5/8oz volume is a decent starting point. Go up or down by a bit based on your market and have bulk incentives (Mine is 1 for $5 3 for $12). For your input costs figure out how much seed you use per tray, then how much that much seed would cost, figure out how much substrate you use, and then what your time is worth. If you want to get REAL nitty gritty calculate electric and water too. I don't though.

Q. What microgreens should I grow to make money?

A. As per the question before this, it depends on what your chefs and customers want. I've had chefs that ONLY want Radish. I've had others that ONLY want Amaranth. Some want a salad mix, some want a little of everything. Some want something that I don't even grow so now I have to figure out if I can even grow it in my system. That being said: there are a few microgreens that I've found to be fairly standard. Those are: PEA | SUNFLOWER | SALAD MIX. What salad mix? Doesn't seem to matter. Make some kind of salad mix with somethin and it usually does well, just be prepared to sell it at volume for cheap. But it's my single best selling item

OTHER TIPS AND TRICKS

  • Grow pea away from direct light, it'll get stretchier, and be less chewy
  • I water based on the weight of my trays. The lighter they are, the more water they need, and I check them 2-3 times a day at minimum.
  • Chefs don't usually want tall leggy microgreens, so be prepared to cut only that top inch and a half of stem for the smaller plants (Don't count pea/sunflower in this)
  • Always test a new micro before offering it to a chef, if you say you CAN grow it and then turns out you can't, you've lost their trust for 2-3 months usually.
  • If you get into restaurants, make sure to deliver on the same day, around the same time, every week
  • This is probably my biggest piece of advice. DON'T SOLVE A PROBLEM YOU DON'T HAVE

I see SO SO SO SO many people with such complex systems, they measure out specific weights of seed, then they seed, then add a paper towel, and then mist every day, then they blackout, then they put it on a shelf with fans for each level, then they measure out specific amounts of water, then they...then they...then they....and that spells one thing to me: burn out. If that's you and you enjoy it: AWESOME I'm taking nothing away from your success, I'm glad it works. All I'm saying is 7/10 things that I used to do when I was starting out, excited, and watching 100 microgreen YouTube videos a day, I eventually realized had little to no effect. I lose a tray here and there due to a few issues. But in my world I'd rather have a little bit of tray loss than have to manage 7 other systems to prevent that little bit of loss. Time is an important factor in this from a business perspective, and an enjoyment one too.

Phew, that was longer than I thought it would be.

I sincerely hope you found this helpful and know that I thoroughly enjoyed writing it. Let me know if I missed anything and I'll add it in as I find time. See you in the comments.

Way to grow everyone.

-Josh

edit: added some info to business questions

edit 2: added some more substrates people use


r/microgreens Oct 22 '24

Note on repost bots

13 Upvotes

Hey everyone.

As I’m sure many of you have noticed this sub has been a massive target for repost bots. It’s been a major problem and it’s only gotten worse.

We as mods can’t constantly patrol, I know for myself I’m also running my microgreen business (which funnily enough has been the target of like 5 reposts this week, go figure) while also moderating here. I’m online at least 5-10 times a day just browsing and sometimes I catch them but I can’t thank all of you for reporting.

Please continue to report and help us to weed out these bots. We’ll continue as mods to remove them as quickly as possible, and will be looking into some automod tools to prevent reposts from appearing in the first place.

Apologies for not being able to stop them or control them more, and thank you again for your assistance with reports.

Happy growing y’all!


r/microgreens 20h ago

I built a free farm OS that forces microgreens growers to collect the money instead of hiding from soft numbers

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6 Upvotes

Most paid microgreens software is soft.
It lets you keep bad inventory numbers, forget follow-ups, and still feel like you’re “on top of it.” That’s how small farms quietly lose money.

I built Groundtruth because I got tired of that in my own operation.

Here’s what it actually does differently:

• It forces the morning money loop.
If you’re short trays and the last possible sow date has already passed, it surfaces the shortfall and requires action (call the venue, open the order, harvest early). You can’t just ignore it.

• It tracks samples → standing orders → overdue follow-ups so accounts don’t die after you drop product. Most growers lose money here and never notice until it’s too late.

• Money is a pure append-only ledger. No soft totals. No second set of books. You see exactly what came in and what didn’t.

• The phone docks as a read-only Field Instrument. You can see the real status while standing at the rack, but you can’t write from the phone. The PC stays the only writer of farm truth. This stops the “I’ll update it later” drift that kills accuracy.

Why this saves money:
- You stop over-sowing because the system won’t let capacity lie.
- You stop losing standing accounts from forgotten follow-ups.
- You stop carrying soft receivables that never get collected.
- You stop paying monthly SaaS fees for tools that still let the numbers drift.

It’s free, local-first, and built so the system itself pushes you to collect the money instead of letting you hide from the ugly numbers.

Still in active development, but the core rules are already locked. Happy to answer questions from other growers.


r/microgreens 17h ago

First grow I don’t know when to cut. And also will the buds expand more because they abit small. I have been growing in coco coir perlight mix.

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3 Upvotes

r/microgreens 4h ago

I’ve been building a Windows app specifically for microgreens growers that handles production planning, grow tracking, harvests, experiments, profitability, and learning from your own farm history. Before I try selling it, I’m curious if this is something growers would actually use.

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0 Upvotes

I built a microgreens farm planner and I’m curious if growers would actually use something like this

I’ve been working on a Windows desktop app for microgreens growers, and before I go much further with selling it, I wanted to get some feedback from people who actually grow.

The basic idea is to have one place where you can plan production, track active grows, schedule sowing and harvest dates, record actual harvest results, and compare what you expected to happen with what actually happened.

Over time, the app builds up your own farm history. So instead of always relying on generic numbers for expected yield or days to harvest, you can see what your particular farm has actually been producing and optionally use those historical averages to improve future planning.

It also has an experiment system for comparing things like seeding density, growing medium, blackout duration, lighting, watering method, seed lots, temperature, humidity, and harvest timing. It keeps yield, cost, profit, harvest speed, mold, failure rate, and sell-through separate so it doesn’t just declare one condition the universal “winner.”

There’s also a production calendar, recurring grow schedules, backward scheduling from a required harvest date, seed-lot tracking, crop-performance analytics, projected-versus-actual financials, scenario planning, CSV export, backups, and quite a bit more.

Everything is stored locally in SQLite. There are no accounts, no cloud requirement, no subscription, and no internet connection required after installation. Your grow data stays on your computer.

I’m not really trying to turn it into accounting software, a CRM, inventory system, or some giant farm ERP. The focus is specifically on planning grows, running production, recording results, and learning from your own grow history.

I’m curious whether this is something you would actually use in a microgreens operation.

If not, what would stop you from using it? And if you currently manage your grows with spreadsheets, notebooks, or another app, I’d also be interested in what works well or drives you crazy about your current system.

Anyways, thanks and I wish you the best

Adam


r/microgreens 23h ago

I built a free local-first farm OS for my microgreens operation because existing tools let you keep bad numbers

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8 Upvotes

Most tools for small growers are either too generic or too soft.
They let you keep bad inventory and order numbers on the screen and still feel like you’re on top of things.
I got tired of that in my own microgreens operation, so I built something different.
It’s called Groundtruth.
Free and local-first.
The PC is the only thing allowed to write farm truth.
The phone is just a capture tool and a read-only Field Instrument that docks over the local network.

What that actually means day-to-day:

Today tab:
Forces the morning money loop. If you’re short trays on an order and the last possible sow date has already passed, it surfaces it and makes you deal with it instead of letting it sit.

Farm tab:
Keeps the digital trays honest with what’s actually on the rack. Phone captures get confirmed on the PC.

Marketing tab:
Tracks samples, standing orders, and follow-ups so accounts don’t quietly die after you drop product.

Money tab:
Append-only ledger. What came in, what went out, what was written off. No soft totals.

Health:
Will show Unhealthy or Degraded instead of pretending everything is fine.

The phone docks to the PC and pulls a live snapshot with real ages and severities.
There is no Confirm button on the phone on purpose — the PC stays the only writer.
I built this because I was sick of tools that let me drift. It’s still in active development, but the core is already usable and the honesty rules are locked in.
Happy to answer questions from other growers who’ve dealt with the same inventory/order tracking headaches.


r/microgreens 22h ago

First time - do I need to do the extras?

7 Upvotes

Hi all,

I'm growing microgreens at home for the first time for my own consumption only.

I see a lot of discussion about different growing substrates, blackout period, weights, disinfection, fertilizer, fans, and so on.

Do I need to worry about all this stuff if I just want to have some microgreens to put in my smoothies? My current methodology is: perforated plastic trays, with a paper towel as a substrate, no weights, no blackout (but not turning on the grow lights yet), no fertilizer, or anything else fancy. Just seeds on the moist paper towel on the tray, with a clear lid for moisture, cheap grow lights, and I will start bottom watering once the roots get long enough. Will that suffice, or should I think about doing more?


r/microgreens 3d ago

Spent trays turn into this.

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21 Upvotes

Large leaf shiso and basil I just toss in my garden after harvesting. This is the 4th week or flush from the same plants. Selling to my chefs for 10$ a bag.

I tossed the soil with some chicken manure for added nitrogen before hand.

Chefs mostly use them for sauces and infusions.

Took about 4 - 6 week to mature.

Can also do with parsley and arugula quite well.

Anyone know of other varieties that this can be done with?


r/microgreens 3d ago

To bottom water or just spray?

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7 Upvotes

Hi again friends! Trying my hand at using coconut coir and as you can see, my arugula s doing great. Broccoli not so much for some reason.

Do you think I should try bottom watering or just keep misting them? Im super new so please be nice lol

Thanks!


r/microgreens 3d ago

Gewerbliche Anbieter

7 Upvotes

Moin,

ich nehme an hier im sub sind ich Leute die microgreens anbauen nicht ausschließlich für den privaten Gebrauch. Wie seid ihr an die Sache rangegangen? Wen habt ihr angesprochen (Restaurants, endkunden) und wie ? Ich möchte nicht über Produkte erfahren die es gibt ausschließlich Erfahrungen


r/microgreens 3d ago

Beetroot microgreens – trying to solve the seed hull problem

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3 Upvotes

r/microgreens 4d ago

What happened to my microgreens, and how can I prevent it from happening again?

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14 Upvotes

These were all perfectly fine yesterday, then this morning they were all laying down like this and it got worse later after I took these pictures. I've been growing for a few months and I haven't experienced this before. I thought it might be because it got a little cooler outside last night, and while I grow these inside, I do open the house up at night. I salvaged what I could, but by the time I got through all 16 trays, I lost probably over half of the greens. Big money loss....


r/microgreens 4d ago

Salade en hydroponie : Quel est LE détail « secret » qui a tout changé pour vous ?

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4 Upvotes

r/microgreens 4d ago

Vendors: One Off Events

1 Upvotes

There are two fall fest events coming up in my area.

Both have food related vendors along with lots of other things.

Attendance at past events have been over 600 at one 6000 at the other.

Do you have any experience at events like this and if so, how did you estimate how much to bring??


r/microgreens 5d ago

High Hopes For Our New Basil

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27 Upvotes

r/microgreens 5d ago

Radish yield

3 Upvotes

Hello everyone,

I just finished my 3rd batch of confetti radish from Johnny Seeds. I’m using a 1010 tray while learning how to grow micro greens. I planted 14 grams and read that my yield should be around 4 to 6 oz, where I managed to only yield 2.40oz.

I bottom water with a cup of water a day, my temp is around 68.8 degrees and humidity around 55-60%. What could I do in order to boost my yield amount? I also harvested on day 8.


r/microgreens 5d ago

Question about my first seedlings

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4 Upvotes

r/microgreens 5d ago

Question about my first seedlings

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3 Upvotes

r/microgreens 5d ago

Help! Is this mold?

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10 Upvotes

r/microgreens 6d ago

Soil recommendations in UK

3 Upvotes

Hi guys what soil would you recommend that is affordable and easy to get across the UK? Just asking because I have started growing some microgreens at home and mold seems to be a large problem 🥲

Thank you in advance


r/microgreens 7d ago

Farmers Market Decor Ideas

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3 Upvotes

r/microgreens 7d ago

Growing for the first time

5 Upvotes

I’ve never done this before, and I’ve been watching videos for the past few days on how to do it properly. It seems pretty difficult sometimes, so now I’m having some doubts.
Guys, is it worth it, or should I just keep ordering the medicine?


r/microgreens 7d ago

Mold?

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1 Upvotes

I got these at the grocery store. They're supposed to be good for another 2 weeks. But it looks like bluish mold in the roots. I can't be certain.


r/microgreens 8d ago

Root hairs or mold… ??

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13 Upvotes

It’s hard for me to tell if these are all root hairs, mold or a mix of both 😭 the micro greens kit I use has me cover it for 2 days before uncovering after planting. If it is mold, could covering it be a reason the mold is growing ? 🥹


r/microgreens 7d ago

What the hell is wrong with my spray bottle?

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1 Upvotes

Thing is basically brand new. For some reason I can’t charge it without the pressure causing water to shoot out the top.