sunflower baby greens

I've just grown my first sunflower baby greens to use in energy soup, but I'm not sure they've turned out right. An article by Anne Wigmore said the best greens to use were 5 day old baby greens. So I've grown sunflower seeds for 6 days, but they're not green. They're white with just 2 tiny green leaves at the top, and when blended, the soup isn't the "Green mush" the Boutenkos described, it was light brown. In Green for Life, Victoria Boutenko described how disgusting and unpalatable energy soup is, and how even dying cancer patients who are desparate to eat it, can't get it down. But mine tasted fine. Its not that my body is adapted to greens because its definately not. Green juice makes me throw up, weeds taste vile, and even green smoothies sometimes won't stay down.
What have I done wrong??? Thanks for any help/advice :)

Did you use only the Green or did you use ALL the Plant? Are they getting any Sun? When you eat Greens, do it Slowly, they tend to stay down better. The older SunFlower Greens get, the Bitter they are.

Bobbie, I grow them in dirt, outside is easiest, by planting Black Oil Sunflower seeds in a mass close together. As for "5 days" I DON'T go by number of days, but harvest them when they are at a nice young but green TWO LEAF stage. Any further they will be bitter.

They're nice mixed into salads too.

Buckwheat lettuce is also nice, pea shoots, etc., grown exactly the same way.

For gardeners, with this being near the end of the season, it's a great way to get a quick new crop in as fall and winter approaches.

Better luck next time!;)

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Originally Posted by spicyfull

Did you use only the Green or did you use ALL the Plant? Are they getting any Sun? When you eat Greens, do it Slowly, they tend to stay down better. The older SunFlower Greens get, the Bitter they are.

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Yes I used all the plant....the green leaves are tiny, if I just used them they wouldn't go far....yes they got lots of sun. Thanks for the tips!! I do tend to drink blended greens quickly, I'll try to slow down.
Are bitter-er greens better or are the babys best?

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Originally Posted by exurb

Bobbie, I grow them in dirt, outside is easiest, by planting Black Oil Sunflower seeds in a mass close together. As for "5 days" I DON'T go by number of days, but harvest them when they are at a nice young but green TWO LEAF stage. Any further they will be bitter.

They're nice mixed into salads too.

Buckwheat lettuce is also nice, pea shoots, etc., grown exactly the same way.

For gardeners, with this being near the end of the season, it's a great way to get a quick new crop in as fall and winter approaches.

Better luck next time!;)

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Thanks!! I grow them indoors, I live in the UK and the weathers too awful for outdoor sprouting. I've heard buckwheat greens cause sun sensitivity, have you had any trouble with this??
I was a bit confused with the sunflower greens because I expected them to be more green, but you've reassured me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by exurb

Bobbie, I grow them in dirt, outside is easiest, by planting Black Oil Sunflower seeds in a mass close together. As for "5 days" I DON'T go by number of days, but harvest them when they are at a nice young but green TWO LEAF stage. Any further they will be bitter.

They're nice mixed into salads too.

Buckwheat lettuce is also nice, pea shoots, etc., grown exactly the same way.

For gardeners, with this being near the end of the season, it's a great way to get a quick new crop in as fall and winter approaches.

Better luck next time!;)

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i do the exact same , and these sun sprouts are a tasty food to me .
plus fast growers . and good on own or mixed in salad .

bobbie--

is there any chance you have access to a greenhouse/polytunnel? im living in ireland for the summer and i had spectacular results with baby sunflower greens growing them in trays in soil in the greenhouse. (that is, with the first crop of them... unfortunately there is a rat problem here anywhere there are houses and the rats discovered the second crop...so ive got to find some way to suspend the trays from the ceiling, but anyway...(

i couldnt get seeds with the shells still on, maybe if i could i wouldnt have the rat problem.

anyway, i soaked the seeds overnight, let them sprout in a bowl for a day or two until they were getting "tails", then spread a layer of soil in trays, spread the seeds rather thickly, though in a single layer, covered with another layer of soil, watered, then covered with a bucket for a few days to give them a bit of darkness. when the seedlings emerged i removed the bucket and left them in the tunnell which gets a lot of sun, for a few days. and made sure i watered well. the first tray i used when they were about 5 inches tall, they were really yummy. you can either cut them at tray level or pull out and wash the roots well and use them too. the other tray i tried to let get a bit taller...but then they got past 2 leaves, and they got really bitter, and i had to compost the whole tray. i also tried growing them outside directly in the ground, but again, rat problems. ick. again, maybe the problem was i needed seeds with the shells, but couldnt get them.

anyway, greenhouse worked great for growing them if you happen to have access to one or a friend who has one

kaybee

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Originally Posted by Bobbie

Thanks!! I grow them indoors, I live in the UK and the weathers too awful for outdoor sprouting. I've heard buckwheat greens cause sun sensitivity, have you had any trouble with this??
I was a bit confused with the sunflower greens because I expected them to be more green, but you've reassured me.

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That problem with buckwheat is only when people consume large amounts of them. Victoria Boutenko mentions that most plants have a little bit of toxins that's only a problem when people don't get a variety in their diet. :)

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Originally Posted by kaybee

bobbie--

im living in ireland for the summer
kaybee

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Welcome back girl. Hope that you missed us but had a good year.

i have had a pretty uneventful summer in dingle...spent the first half of the summer asking everyone i knew if anyone could tell me about the wild plants and seaweed i could eat here...was pretty unsuccessful... very little work, and always waiting around for it to come on the spur of the moment...tourist season slow becuase of the weather.. if i come next summer im needing to get a car so maybe i can get down and see you guys :)

hope you are well

k

I did plant some stuff for fall. peas, chard, beets, climbing spinache. How and when do you use the pea shoots? Just the new shoots of each leaf or it it the whole young plant? I planted several kinds the to use the shoots, but not sure what to do, will they still produce my snow pea peas?

I want to use the pea shoots I planted for the purpose of blending, and am not sure just what part. I think I know. The new shoots of leaves tucked inside of the bigger leaves? Any recipes?