Water Quality And Sprouts, Wheatgrass

I want to write a bit about water quality while growing sprouts and wheatgrass, since I have searched and haven't found any substantial information on this subject. I live in Taiwan now, and everybody here either buys bottled water, boils the tap water, or has an elaborate and expensive water filter. I used to grow a lot of sprouts, but I quickly found that this required lots and lots of water. It was too expensive to soak, rinse, and wash all of the sprouts in bottled water, and I didn't have a great filter, so I just used tap water. Even though I love sprouts, I decided to stop growing and eating them here because I couldn't trust the quality of the water. Many people in this and other countries with questionable water quality grow and eat sprouts, and I'm sure most use regular tap water. I am just too afraid of parasites invading my body.

When I grow wheatgrass, I still use regular tap water to water the soil. After I cut the grass, I use bottled water to rinse and soak it for juicing. My theory is that there is one main difference between sprouts and wheatgrass when it comes to the quality of water used. While growing wheatgrass, the seeds grow in soil, and thus take nutrients from the watered soil. When you grow sprouts, they grow on trays or in jars without soil, and take everything they need directly from the water. This should mean that the quality of the water used is a lot more important for growing sprouts than wheatgrass.

That said, the water quality where I live in Taiwan probably isn't as bad as it seems. The government actually says it is fine to drink without treatment, but nobody believes them. I have actually heard that they overtreat the water here so much that it has too much chlorine and other chemicals in it. I'm sure the water quality is worse in many other places and people still grow wheatgrass and eat sprouts there as well. I'm also sure many other people are in the same situation as I am here--constantly wondering if it is ok or not to use the tap water. Unfortunately nearly all of the wheatgrass and sprouting sources are written with the assumption that you live in a country with reliable, safe drinking water coming out of your tap.

I will post another article if I find more information on this subject, as I feel it is an important one. In the meantime, if anyone has any hints, leave a comment here. Thanks

Mold: Part 2

Here are a few ways to help tame the mold growing on your wheatgrass:

1. Get different seeds. Try to find organic hard winter wheat seeds that haven't been sitting around for too long. You can get them from another store and see if that helps. Certain wheatgrass seeds are better able to resist mold.
2. On hot days, make sure your wheatgrass gets some ventilation. If it isn't windy, a fan can help circulate air and keep the mold at bay.
3. During a hot summer, plant fewer seeds on each tray. This will provide more room on the tray for air to circulate, and should help with the mold problem.

Mold: Part 1

Pretty much everybody who grows wheatgrass has to deal with mold at one time or another. Some people like me have to put up with it all the time!!!

Here is the scoop on the mold growing on your wheatgrass:

Green-Blue Mold: This stuff will grow on the seeds that don't sprout after they have been on the tray for a few days. It will cover the un-sprouted seed and pretty much just stay there. Since it won't climb up the grass, it can't do any harm because you cut the grass above it.

White Cotton-looking mold: This mold is a bit more of a pain than the green stuff. This will grow on your seeds for a number of reasons. Sometimes it grows because the seeds are spread very close together. In hot or damp weather mold seems to be more of a problem. While it is best not to consume this mold, you can you easily cut above it when you are ready to juice. Once in a while I hear of someone getting a reaction to mold, but I haven't had any problems. As long as you cut above the mold and rinse your grass well before juicing, you shouldn't have any problems. Read this post for ways to help reduce mold.

I got myself a net

I have decided to put a big green garden net over all of my wheatgrass from now on to protect it from all the crazy pests that are lurking nearby. I just propped it up with stiff wire, and tuck it under the trays, and I have an easy protector of my grassy green stuff. Last year I had lettuce that was just about ready to pick growing on my balcony when I discovered little green eggs all over it. The next day the eggs hatched and within 6 hours or so nearly all of my lettuce had been devoured by caterpillars--Zoinks! Although I have had no such problem with wheatgrass so far, I don't want to take any chances. In any case, it keeps the pigeons at bay a little.

Pigeons, Round 2

After much thought and research about the best way to keep the pigeons from walking and crapping all over my balcony and ruining my wheatgrass, I have come up with a reasonable solution: For the past 3 days

I have been ambushing them with a bucket of water to scare them away, and after about 20 times it seems to have worked a bit. I also bought a net and put it over my wheatgrass. Hopefully this works. I will keep you posted!

Pigeons Invading!!!

The latest pests to invade my wheatgrass are pigeons!!! I live in Taiwan, and there are tame pigeons flying all over the place. They have discovered my wheatgrass balcony, and I woke up yesterday morning, set up my juicer, and found a pigeon nesting right on my grass! There was pigeon-poo all over the place too. Since you can't get rid of them, I guess I am going to have to get a little net and put it over my grass. Now I have to go 10 days without my juice until my next tray is ready! Bummer.