Italian Basil Microgreens Planting

Italian Basil  Microgreens Planting:

Using Harraz Farm & Garden Microgreens Kit

1. Empty the first pack of soil into the box. Make sure the soil is stirred well and aerated before use.
2. Soak one pack of seeds for 2-8 hours, then drain from the soaking water. 
3. Using a water sprayer, keep the soil moist, but not soaked. Spread the seeds evenly to cover most of the soil without stacking, leaving small spaces between them. Leave a 1 cm space around the edges of the box for easy ventilation, watering and harvesting.
4. Open the hole at the top left in the lid to allow air in and avoid rotting. 
5. Spray the seeds & the lid’s interior until fully wet. Close the lid tightly for humidity.
6. Put the box in the dark for at least 48 hours, do not open it at all. 
7. After 48 hours, open the box for air, check the length of your microgreens and spray with water if dry.
8. For the next 48 hours, turn the lid upside down, where the sticker-side of the lid is facing the plants. Put weights on it to create pressure on the plants. (Ex: Put a medium-weight book) 
   • During the first 24 hours: keep the box in a dark place.
   • During the second 24 hours: keep in a bright place to complete the photosynthesis process.
   • while maintaining weights during both periods.
9. These conditions force the microgreens to stretch and push the lid upwards in search of light. This strengthens them and makes them more nutritious and easier to harvest when they’re higher than the edge of the box.
10. Remove the weights and the lid, and place the box in a bright spot, preferably indoors. Irrigate the soil if dry, & always keep the soil fully wet, but not soaked. 
11. Harvest your microgreens when they’re about the length of your small finger and the color is bright enough. Use thin scissors to cut your needed amount, right above the soil and add to your meals.
12. Keep harvesting until you run out. Repeat the whole process using the second pack of seeds and soil after cleaning the box.

 Planting in Microgreens Trays

1. Empty the soil into the tray. Make sure the soil is stirred well and aerated before use.
2. Soak about 40 grams of seeds for 2-8 hours, then drain from the soaking water. 
3. Spread the seeds evenly to cover most of the soil without stacking, leaving small spaces between them. Leave a 1 cm space around the edges of the box for easy ventilation, watering and harvesting.
4. Using a water sprayer, keep the soil moist, but not soaked.
5. Spray the seeds interior until fully wet. Close the lid tightly for humidity.
6. Put the tray in the dark for at least 48 hours, and do not expose it at all (the tray can be rolled up by wrapping it with a plastic bag and making separate holes to create the necessary moisture for germination and all of you to warm the seeds)
7. After 48 hours, expose the tray for air, check the length of your microgreens and spray with water if dry.
8. For the next 48 hours, place another tray planted or empty on top of the tray, and put weights on it to pressurize the microgreens. (Example: put a book of medium weight) (this method is used to press the sprouts, which makes them more powerful and of higher quality) 
   • During the first 24 hours: keep the tray in a dark place.
   •  During the second 24 hours: keep in a bright place to complete the photosynthesis process.

while maintaining weights during both periods. 

1. These conditions force the microgreens to stretch and push the upper tray upwards in search of light. This strengthens them and makes them more nutritious and easier to harvest when they’re higher than the edge of the box.
2. Remove the weights and the lid, and place the box in a bright spot, preferably indoors. Irrigate the soil if dry, & always keep the soil fully wet, but not soaked. (It is preferable to irrigate the soil from the bottom by placing the tray in a larger tray filled with water or which we called rockwool tray so that the soil drinks water from the bottom and not from the top to preserve the quality of the microgreens)
3. Harvest your microgreens when they’re about the length of your small finger and the color is bright enough. Use thin scissors to cut your needed amount, right above the soil and add to your meals.
4. Keep harvesting until you run out. Repeat the whole process using another seeds and soil after cleaning the tray.

Important Tips:

1. Make sure to put the box or the tray in either the dark or light according to the tips mentioned.
2. Keep the soil moist, but not soaked.
3. Sometimes, the beginning of rot may appear at the stem of the sprouts, which means lack of aeration, or the seeds were placed closely. Buy oxygen water (Hydrogen Peroxide) from any pharmacy and dilute it then spray it on the rotten spot, it will remove it, the oxygen will be vaporized, and it will eventually become plain water. It is harmless and you can proceed with the steps.
4.  At the beginning of the life of the plant, some roots or thin threads are formed on the surface of the soil, their color is pure white. This is the root hairs of the microgreens, not roots. The shape of the roots differs from that, and their color is somewhat dark and gradient in colors.
5. During cold days, the germination rate of the microgreens may be slower, so leave the seeds in the dark to germinate for longer hours before opening the lid.
6. After germination of seeds and sprouts from the surface of the soil, avoid irrigating the microgreens by spraying, because the water that is sprayed does not reach the soil and therefore does not give the plant its need of water (in the case of planting in a harraz microgreens: the microgreens are irrigated through The sides of the box so that the water touches the soil directly) (In the case of planting in microgreens trays: the microgreens trays are placed in larger trays filled with water so that the soil is irrigated from the bottom of the tray)