If you love the flavor of fresh peas, you will love Pea Microgreens! Pea microgreens are commonly mistaken for Pea Sprouts. Pea Microgreens are harvested once their true leaves grow in and when they have stringy tendrils at the tips of the plants. These baby vegetables are packed with nutrients and flavor!

Microgreens have about 40 times the nutritional value than their adult vegetable counterparts have. Pea microgreens provide vitamin C, iron, calcium, vitamin K and vitamin A. They also contain fiber which will help you feel full longer and benefit your immune system and cardiovascular health. Pea microgreens are more nutritionally dense than many other types of leafy greens. Consuming them raw also ensures their nutrients won't become depleted during the cooking process. Some of our favorite foods we like to use pea microgreens in are summer salads, avocado toast topping, risotto, and in stir fries. 

How To Grow Pea Microgreens:

1. If you are using one of our kits, or a similar bottom watering hydroponic system, you will start by soaking your pea seeds for 6-12 hours to help jump start the germination process. 

2. Once they have been soaked, strain and rinse the seeds to prepare them for planting. While they are straining, mist your grow mat or soil. 

3. Before planting, we recommend sprinkling azomite powder on the surface of the growing medium. Azomite Powder is a slow release organic fertilizer sourced from volcanic ash. It promotes strong and healthy plants by slowly releasing minerals and trace elements into any growing medium.

4. Evenly spread the pea seeds on the surface of the growing medium and mist once more with water. 

5. In our kits, we use the bottom watering system. We use two trays, one that is perforated with drainage holes and one that is solid. The growing process happens in the tray with the holes. The solid tray is used to stack on top of the growing seeds during the incubation period to create a dark and weighted environment. Later, the bottom tray sits beneath the growing tray. Since microgreens are so small and can be prone to becoming moldy if they are too wet, we have found the most successful way to grow microgreens is to bottom water them. By keeping the solid tray filled with water this allows the pea roots to drink water as they need instead of sitting in too much water or becoming dried out. 

6. Leave the peas covered by the solid tray for a day or two to incubate, be sure to mist them twice a day. As soon as the pea seed sprouts turn green, remove the top tray.

7. Place the tray in sunlight or under grow lights and start bottom watering twice a day. Once in the morning and once in the evening. 

8. Harvest when the pea shoots are 4-5 inches tall and have 3 shelves of leaves on them. Use a scissor or knife to harvest. They taste best if served the day of their harvest. Stop watering microgreens 12 hours before you harvest them so that they are dry and easier to store. The neat thing about pea microgreens is when you harvest, leave a few leaves on the plant so that you can get another or maybe even two more harvests out of the same seeds. 

9. To store them, wrap them in a paper towel to absorb any moisture. Then place them in an airtight container. Pea microgreens have a longer shelf life than other types of microgreens, lasting 7 or more days in the fridge.