Let's Grow Microgreens! Summer Camp

PARENTS: Please read the following material list closely and contact me if you have any questions. To make this course successful for your students, I need to know that they have the proper materials to get gardening. I want to be conscious of buying options that are local/wholesale as well as organic/affordable, so I've done my best to give you a few starting points in the External Resources links. Ultimately these are all recommendations and there is no black-and-white "right" list of materials. At the end of the day, you really just need soil, seeds, and a sunny place to put them. 

Seeds for Microgreens ($5-15)
-- This is the most "up-to-you" part. I've attached two links in External Resources for "Microgreen mixes" of seeds from Amazon that are each about $15. You can certainly find other similar variety packs online. I think, however, that the best and most reliable way to obtain seeds is to locate your local garden store (or Lowe's / Home Depot type department store if there's no mom&pop store nearby) and ask them for any/all of these four types of seeds: Broccoli, Radish, Cilantro, and Sunflowers. Get about 1 tablespoons or 1/32 oz of each variety to start, more like 100 seeds for the sunflowers. This will be cheaper than online mixes (probably around $5 total) and will give you the opportunity to support a local business in this trying time. 

Please do not hesitate to ask me about seed questions, as they are pretty fundamental to this camp working!

Containers for Plants ($0-15)
-- This is where your creativity can shine. I will be using egg cartons and plastic berry containers to demonstrate. You can play with all sorts of different upcycled and recycled materials for the container. I've linked a garden tray that will work if you'd rather have something made specifically for the job, but I really encourage you to find something at home that can be retooled into this job. If nothing I've listed seems accessible, let me know and I'll help you find the right container.

Soil for Containers ($5-15)
-- Any Seed Starting mix will do. 8 quarts is plenty in terms of Volume. That being said, seeds grow well in any quality soil mix. If you already own some soil that's relatively fresh, that will work fine. I've linked two brands of Seed Starting mixes in the External Resources, one being organic and one not. I recommend checking what their shipping rates/estimated times are on these sites or other distributors before placing an order -- it's probable that you can curbside pick-up the same brand at a local garden or hardware store for cheaper and/or sooner.

Watering Tool
-- You can make do with sprinkling water gently from a spoon, or using the kitchen sink's "spray" function gently. I recommend that you use a misting spray bottle that you can fill with water if possible. I've linked the bottle I use from CVS in External Resources -- it's really the most simplistic spray bottle design out there, you can find it anywhere online or in department stores. 

Tray/Receptacle to catch water
-- A baking sheet will do, depending on the width of your windowsill/table. However, I'd recommend just laying a dish towel underneath it when you're watering. We won't be soaking these seeds in the first place so it shouldn't get too wet.

• Microgreen Seed Option #1
• Microgreen Seed Option #2
• Soil Option #1 (Organic)
• Soil Option #2 (Non-organic)
• Garden Tray
• Watering Bottle