You can always grow any microgreens in soil. Some crops like sunflower, buckwheat, pea, cilantro and beet are very challenging to grow hydroponically, so we have created a soil based microgreens kit especially for these crops. They are among our very favorites. We prefer to grow hydroponically where possible because it easy, clean and every bit as effective as soil for most microgreen seeds. Our hydroponic kit is also very light and less expensive to ship.

Usually the brassica family is the among easiest. These include broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbages. The mustard family is also typically easy to grow. Most of the seeds in the hydroponic microgreens kit (recommended for beginners) have the easier seeds. In soil-based crops, sunflower and buckwheat are very easy to grow.

Amaranth can be difficult as can beets. Arugula can sometimes be challenging. Some of the challenging Microgreens are really what makes growing microgreens a fun hobby. Experimenting with different growing techniques and variables can be very fulfilling.

They are not critical, but your crops will need to be exposed to light at the right time. Incandescent, fluorescent, and direct sunlight are all fine. We do use grow lights and prefer LED grow lights as they are light, consume vastly less electricity, produce very little heat, and only give plants the blue and red ends of the spectrum which is what plants absorb. We can’t get greener and more healthy plants even with direct sunlight.

Second harvests are generally scraggly and weak, but it can be done, especially if growing in soil. Hydroponic crops that regrow will go for so long that the grow pad will begin to give off a musty odor. We recommend one harvest per crop and then disposing of the growing pad.