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Wednesday, October 7, 2020

Hamama Microgreens Starter Kit and Seed Quilts Review

The Easiest Way to Grow Your Own Microgreens - Hamama Seed Quilts

With a Hamama Microgreens Starter Kit and the company's proprietary seed quilts, growing and harvesting fresh, delicious, and nutritious microgreens is nearly effortless!

Fresh, crisp microgreens are colorful, refreshing, and extremely nutritious. Since last year, when I committed to making healthy lifestyle changes, including a special focus on healthy food choices, I have been adding microgreens to salads, sandwiches, soups, eggs, and other dishes as often as possible.

Although buying packaged microgreens at our local Whole Foods is an expensive and frustrating proposition, growing my own hadn't seemed like a viable option, given my poor track record with keeping even healthy plants alive, much less growing them from seed.

Then, four months ago, I found out about an innovative microgreens growing system from a company called Hamama, which was designed to be as as simple, effortless, and low-maintenance as possible, so that even container gardening newbies like me could grow these healthy, tasty, nutrient-dense greens year-round.

The proprietary, patent pending Hamama Seed Quilt Growing System is the brainchild of co-founders Camille Richman and Daniel Goodman, who met when they were mechanical engineering students at the world-renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Following their graduation from MIT, they worked together full-time at the MIT Media Lab, researching high tech indoor agriculture. After growing food both in the lab and at home for several years, they wanted to make it possible for more people to experience the benefits of growing healthy food at home.

In May, I decided to order a Hamama Microgreens Starter Kit, including three seed quilts and a reusable grow tray. I was surprised and delighted by the results, and a few weeks later, I ordered two more growing trays and 18 more seed quilts. Although I've skipped a week here and there, I've successfully grown and harvested around more than a dozen seed quilts at this point. Now, I'm anxious to share my experience, and perhaps inspire others to try growing their own healthy, delicious, superfood microgreens, even if they have never had any experience, or luck, growing vegetables in the past.

P.S. Make sure to read all the way to the end of this review to find out how to get a 10% discount off the purchase price of your first order of a Hamama Microgreens Starter Kits, Seed Quilts, or other microgreens growing accessories!

Microgreens Are Superfoods That Pack a Powerful Nutritional Punch

Increasing our consumption of nutritious, dark leafy greens is an important part of healthy eating. The USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend eating more fruits and vegetables, including dark leafy greens. For those of us who have chosen a low carb, ketogenic approach to eating, dietary restrictions make it even harder to get enough nutrients from the foods we eat, rather than from supplements.

Adding more microgreens to our diets, in particular, provides even greater health benefits. A 2012 research study found that microgreens contain between four and 40 times higher concentrations of essential nutrients than their mature counterparts!

These nutrient-dense, immature plants can be excellent sources of key vitamins such as C, E, K, and also carotenoids including lutein and beta-carotene (a precursor to Vitamin A aka retinol), two important antioxidants provide a wide range of health benefits, including helping to protect our eyes against macular degeneration.

Large, colorful, salad topped with Hamama microgreens

We enjoy a large, colorful, salad with a generous helping of freshly harvested microgreens every day!

Why Not Just Buy Packaged Microgreens Instead of Growing Them?

Unfortunately, many supermarkets and grocery stores either don't sell them, or run out of them quickly. Even when I've been lucky enough to find one or two containers, those commercially grown microgreens have cost a pretty penny. Far too often, the expensive organic microgreens we've bought at our local Whole Foods Market have become not just limp but slimy and inedible after just one or two days in the vegetable drawer of our fridge. Most are also sold in single-use, plastic clamshell packaging, which is bad for the environment.

Finding organic microgreens or ones that have been grown from non-GMO seeds can also be a challenge.

Unfortunately, since March, these problems have been further exacerbated by the widespread negative impact of the current, unprecedented health crisis.

The Pros and Cons of Using Hamama Seed Quilts vs. Growing Microgreens From Seed

Buying packets of loose seeds and growing them on a bed of moistened potting mix, soil, or coconut coir is, without question, the cheapest way to grow microgreens at home. However, it also requires watering the seeds once or twice a day, and monitoring their progress daily, from the the time they are planted until they are ready to be harvested, usually takes somewhere between 9 days and a few weeks. And they do best with 4–6 hours of direct sunlight, or natural light supplemented by a grow light(s).

While this may be a good option for experienced container gardening enthusiasts, not everyone was blessed with a "green thumb," or enjoys growing things from seed. Some of us just want to have convenient and consistent access to a variety of microgreens and enjoy them when they are at their freshest, tastiest, and most nutritious, and are happy to pay more for an approach that requires significantly less time and effort than growing these immature greens from seed.

That's why Hamama developed its proprietary seed quilt system, which makes growing fresh, delicious, nutrient-rich microgreens indoors as easy, effortless, and care-free as possible.

Anatomy of a Hamama Microgreens Seed Quilt

Each seed quilt consists of three layers (excluding the seeds):

The bottom layer is a loosely woven coconut coir mat (aka coconut fiber mat or coconut husk pad).

The middle layer is a thin sheet of white felt.

The top layer is some type of unbleached paper.

The seeds are sandwiched between the white felt layer and the light brown paper cover, divided into 20 long, narrow, rectangular, "quilted" sections that hold the seeds in place in a fairly even distribution.

Key Benefits of the Hamama Seed Quilt Grow System for Microgreens

By combining the seeds, the growing substrates, and the papery cover into a single, compact unit and pairing it with a perfectly-sized growing tray, Hamama has removed as many variables as possible.
The Hamama Starter Kit contains everything you need to grow microgreens, except the 24–26 ounces of water for the initial soak. (Depending on the quality of your tap water, I recommend using filtered water.)
Starting a new seed quilt takes as little as 1–2 minutes! After that, you can basically ignore it for the next 4–6 days, until the seeds have germinated.
This bottom-watering and self-watering growing system is the closest thing to "set-it-and-forget it." Once you pour water inside the grow tray up to the fill line and briefly submerge the seed quilt to get all 20 sections evenly moistened, you shouldn't have to mist the seeds quilt or seedling, or top up the water. (Toward the end of the growing period, I try to check the water level every couple of days, if I remember. just in case it drops below the midpoint of the coconut coir mat.)
The brown paper cover helps to filter the ambient light during the initial 4–6 day germination period, then it peels off easily to provide the seedlings with full exposure to the ambient light.

Hamama Microgreens Seed Quilts Are So Effortless, They Practically Grow Themselves!

Growing a Hamama microgreens seed quilt is as easy as 1-2-3:

Do the brief initial "soak." Add water to the growing tray's marked fill line (no higher) and submerge the seed quilt for 10–30 seconds, just until all 20 sections have uniformly changed to a darker shade of brown.

After 3–5 days, when the seeds have germinated, pushing against the paper cover and causing the sections to puff up or balloon, peel the paper cover.

Approximately 7–10 days after the initial soak, harvest your microgreens!

You can harvest the entire seed quilt at once and store whatever microgreens you won't use immediately in the refrigerator, if you wish, or harvest a few sections at a time over the next few days.

Hamama Earthy Clover and Super Salad Mix seed quilts and are puffed up and ready to peel

I often grow more than one Hamama seed quilt at a time

What's Included In the Hamama Microgreens Starter Kit?

One reusable Grow Tray.

Black plastic or white ceramic

Your choice of three Hamama Seed Quilts (choose all one variety, or mix and match up to three different types)

Easy growing instructions.

Choose From 10 Different Types of Microgreens Seed Quilts

Hearty Broccoli, Refreshing Cabbage, Spicy Daikon Radish, Super Salad Mix, Sweet Wheatgrass, Zesty Mix, Energizing Kale, Earthy Clover, Hot Wasabi Mustard, and Fragrant Fenugreek. All the seeds in Hamama's microgreens seed quilts are non-GMO Six are also organic (Energizing Kale, Fragrant Fenugreek, Hearty Broccoli, Spicy Daikon Radish, Earthy Clover, and Sweet Wheatgrass). The company is working on making the switch to an all certified organic line.

Save 10% on Your First Hamama Order!

Use my Hamama shopping link, add the products you want to the shopping cart, then use the discount code SUPERGREENS during checkout to get 10% off your product total.

Hamama Microgreens Starter Kit and Seed Quilts Review by Margaret Schindel

Posts About My Keto Diet Journey

My First Year on The Keto Diet

Preparing to Succeed on the Keto Diet, Part One

Preparing to Succeed on the Keto Diet, Part Two

Low Carb Muffins & Cupcakes: Treats to Enjoy on a Keto Diet

Low Carb Keto Chocolate Yogurt Granola Chip Pudding Recipe

Good Dee’s Keto Cookie Low Carb Baking Mix Review

Hamama Microgreens Growing Kit Review & Success Tips

My Favorite Hamama Microgreens Seed Quilt Accessories

Keto Cheddar Cheese Biscuits With Chives Recipe

The Ultimate Keto Hot Chocolate Recipe

The Best Low Carb Keto Gift Ideas: Keto Gift Guide

The Best Low Carb Keto Cinnamon Muffins

Wholesome Yum Keto Bread Mix and Yeast Bread Recipe

The Good Chocolate 100% Organic No Sugar Dark Chocolate Review

The Best Advice to Maintain Your Keto Diet Weight Loss

My New Irresistibly Delicious Keto Cheese Crackers Recipe

Luscious Low Carb Keto Triple Peppermint Cheesecake Brownies Recipe

Quick & Easy Livlo Blueberry Scones Keto Baking Mix Review

Snack Better With The Best Healthy Keto Cookie Dough Bites

The Best Quick and Easy Low Carb Keto Pizza Recipe

The Best Quick and Easy Low Carb Keto Shortcake Cupcakes Recipe

Comparing the Best Keto-Friendly Chocolate Hazelnut Spreads - No Added Sugars

The Best Low Carb Keto Sandwich and Burger Buns Mix

Blueberry Biscuit Scones — New, Easy, Low Carb Keto Recipe

The Best Keto Pizza Crust Mix With 0 Net Carbs

An Unusual, Delicious Strawberry Chocolate Tea With 0 Calories

Delicious Sugar-Free Keto Cookies That OREO Fans Will Love

Healthy Pistachio Cherry Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cereal Treats Recipe

Easy, Decadent, High Protein, Sugar-Free Rocky Road Cottage Cheese Ice Cream

The Best Quick & Easy Low Carb Sausage and Ricotta Calzones

How to Make Refreshing Vanilla Italian Soda (With or Without Cream)

Reviews of the Keto Diet by Barbara C. (aka Brite-Ideas)

My Personal Keto Testimonial

How I Stayed Committed to the Ketogenic Way of Eating

Monday, September 21, 2020

Reviewing Baker Creek Seeds: Strawberry Watermelon

I am excited to have been able to order a packet of Watermelon seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. I am very excited about this coming gardening season. This Watermelon variety is the "Strawberry". It is the most delicious watermelon I've ever tasted.

For the sake of transparency, I have to share that I am not currently gardening. I am in a metro-area apartment. I have grown some fantastic tomatoes on my southwest facing balcony. But I barely remember my last real garden. I own some land in a rural area. While I don't have a garden there yet, I did experiment this summer and was surprised to grow some monster zucchini squash and some very healthy looking cabbage. That experiment made me even more anxious to plant more edible plants this spring.

However, with the current craziness of 2020, including difficulty with the supply chain, I thought I'd buy my garden seeds now. In order to ensure I have seeds when it is time to start them. This watermelon is one of the plants I am most excited to try to grow.

Watermelon - Strawberry

I had been hearing, from serious gardeners, that they were extremely pleased about their Strawberry Watermelons. They were happy about the plants, the size of the melons, and the wonderful taste. At that same time, I had the opportunity to taste some of this melon. It was delicious! So flavorful. I love watermelon and eat some about 5 days a week during season. Some from the grocery and some from local farms. But none were as flavorful as the Strawberry Watermelons. There is a bit of a berry flavor - slightly different than a typical watermelon. But it is not overpowering. And the traditional melon flavor is present.

More about this variety:

Name: Citrullus lanatus
85 days
sugary sweet pink flesh
ripens to within a 1/2 inch of the rind
oblong melon, 15-25 lbs.

About Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Baker Creek specializes in heirloom seeds. It is highly recommended by avid gardeners, especially those who like to save their own seeds for future gardens. You can find Baker Creek seeds at their website: rareseeds.com .

They carry familiar plants and varieties as well as plants and varieties you have likely never heard of. I have placed two orders and have received both orders without problems and in a timely fashion.

The headquarters is a place that during normal times (as opposed to during times of quarantines and social distancing) can be visited. Watch for announcements for the re-opening of their village, store, and restaurant near Mansfield, MO.

In the meantime, you can browse their selections online or request a printed catalog.

In addition to their vegetable seeds, they offer some gorgeous flowers. I always try to plant some flowers for the pollinators. This year I can't wait to plant these gorgeous Zinnia's along with several varieties of sunflowers.

I have never seen these types of Zinnias, have you? I love "regular" zinnias. I can only imagine how amazing these will be in my "garden".

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Wednesday, August 5, 2020

Totally Natural Healthy Ways to Increase Your Garden's Growth - A Garden Review

It's mid-summer and everyone who has a garden is starting to reap the rewards of their spring labor. Now I must confess, I did not do a whole lot of back breaking labor. I live on the 18th floor of an apartment building and digging in the ground is not an option for me. So I have three Rubbermaid Tubs on my balcony. These are my "garden" and that is my space to grow my tomatoes and cucumbers.

Don't go feeling sorry for me, I like it this way. I gave up my "home garden" a few years ago, but missed my fresh tomatoes so much, I had to find a way to grow some higher up.

When we first moved into the apartment, I tried to grow tomatoes in smaller pots (10 inch diameter), I would water, feed (with fertilizer) and talk to them daily. I was somewhat successful that first year. My husband would eat his balcony fresh tomato and say, "that was a lot of work for this tomato, you can buy them cheaper at the farmer's markets now that they are in season!"

He was right, the first year, even though I did my best at caring for these plants, they did not produce anything that would have made a gardener's heart go pitter-patter! Our garden produced a few tomatoes that we did enjoy, but overall we were disappointed.

Fast Forward to today: My balcony garden has been expanded (no more little pots) and I have found the secret (I think it's the difference between the first year and now) to keeping my garden happy, healthy and producing more fruits than ever before.

So do you want to Know What Made the Difference?

As a gardener (we share what works and what doesn't work) I will tell you! I have NOT used one ounce, tablespoon, teaspoon or any other measuring device, of fertilizer this year! Yet, I have already picked, eaten and enjoyed at least 10 cucumbers since the beginning of July, and countless cherry tomatoes!

As you can see in the picture above and the ones below, there is no lack of little tomatoes for us to enjoy in the next little while.

Our balcony garden has been prolific in producing these cherry tomatoes for our enjoyment. I attribute it all to the help I have procured for my containers. The "help" is totally organic, pesticide free, natural and abundant.

What is this help that I keep mentioning?

Red Wigglers (they get all the credit) have made all the difference in my containers this year.

As I mentioned earlier, I have used NO chemical fertilizers in my containers this year. A dear friend of mine (Cheri Kochir Salt (owner and operator of Mobius8Organics.) and I have been trying our best to minimize our carbon footprint on the earth. Many people are interested in doing this and have no idea where to start. If you are a gardener, you could start right here.

In many discussions with her, I found that red wigglers can make all the difference in the world to your gardens (whether in the ground proper or in a container). Helping the earth to renew, means (for me anyways) not adding any extra chemicals and getting rid of organic wastes, without adding to landfills.

When you have red wigglers in your containers you can do both of these things. Red Wigglers love to eat all your organic waste (peels, cores, egg shells, coffee grounds, tea bags and even your paper products). Yes you should read that list again (and it's just a small list, there is much more they could eat if you have an outdoor garden and compost heap.)

These are just a few of my "Red Wiggler" family, who are enjoying their home on my balcony! I have uncovered them for you to see how these guys and gals (actually worms are both male and female scientifically known as hermaphrodites) work. Their home usually looks more like this picture below:

Red Wigglers and earthworms in general do not like the light! They work best in a dark, damp environment. So, I make sure that they are happy by covering the soil surface with damp cardboard or my weekly newsprint flyers! You can also see coffee filters with the coffee grounds still in them on the surface of the soil. My worms, like myself, seem to love coffee.......

Now the only absolute must that you have to maintain is a certain level of moisture in your containers. You cannot let them dry out, or your earthworms will dehydrate and die as well. So far in my experimentation this year, that has not been a problem. I water regularly and sometimes the rain helps too. My worms seem to be happy and multiplying without any further help from me.

What do these worms do that makes the garden grow so well?

Earthworms and red wigglers in particular are prolific at eating organic waste. When they eat this waste, the worms then expel the waste(worm poop) and if your garden is in a container, this waste becomes part of the soil composition. Vermicomposting is the "proper name" for working with worms in the garden. For you homesteaders who are looking for a cottage industry growing worms and selling Red Wigglers for both fishermen and farmers is a growing industry (no pun intended). Once you have your vermiculture set up, there is nothing more for you to do!

The worms will provide you with deep rich soil, full of nutrients and depending on how you set yourself up, you may even have worm compost tea to feed your plants. This worm tea (my version) is the best fertilizer you could ever want. It's rich in nutrients, has no odor and your plants will thrive. This worm compost tea won't burn the roots of your plants either. I have a set up on my balcony that allows me to enjoy collecting this worm tea and if you are interested you can do this too.

Behind the picture of my worm tea, you can see my garden tower. It has 50 different pockets to plant and a nice tower in the center to add organic waste without disturbing your plants. There is a drawer at the bottom which collects all the extra water and worm tea (again my version). The castings remain in the tower for your plants to thrive on. You can watch a video here and see the difference between this and other vertical gardening options: Garden Tower 2 Project

There will be no need for Chemical fertilizers! Chemical fertilizers, if they are incorrectly mixed can sometimes do more harm than good. Save yourself the time and trouble by using an Earth Friendly Natural Way to fertilize your plants. I know that this has made the difference between my first attempts at gardening 18 stories up and this year's attempt! We've had a great year so far and I'm sure it will continue to prosper and grow well into the fall.

If you want to know more about Vermiculture or Worm Farming there are several really good websites and YouTube Videos that you can watch.

Basic Vermicomposting or
How to Compost are just two of the really good sites to learn from.

If you want to get started you will need a good bin. I use these ones for both growing my garden and I will use these for my worm farm too!

My own experiment will continue in the fall as I try to bring my worms indoors so they won't freeze over the winter months. I will let you know how it goes come spring of 2021.

Stay tuned there is more good sound ecological information coming up!

***All of the pictures in this Post are from my balcony garden, taken August 4, 2020.

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Monday, June 26, 2017

Reviewing Garden Tags by SimplyYoursByDesign

I just received my custom garden tags by SimplyYoursByDesign and I have to write a review immediately. Whether you are an organized and skilled gardener or a hopeful and forgetful gardener like myself, you may be as excited about these garden tags as I am. I am thrilled about these customized, metal, durable, and beautiful garden tags.

Why are Garden Tags Important?

Perhaps you have a really good memory and can recall exactly what you planted where. Or perhaps, someone purchases land with existing plants and can identify every tree, bush, flower, and shrub. That's not me. No matter how hard I practice, I'm not very good at plant identification. And my memory is horrible.

I realized the importance of plant identification when I was looking for a certain type of rose bush that I had in a yard many years ago. That search has proved impossible without having more information than I have about that particular plant. As a result, I am determined to try to keep track of the plants I plant on my land.

I especially want to keep track of my PawPaw trees.

I have recently fallen in love with PawPaws. PawPaw is a tree that produces wonderful "tropical" fruit. I am planting PawPaw trees on my land at The Shack. Like apples (Red Delicious, Gala, Granny Smith, etc) there are different types of PawPaws. Some I like better than others. If I am successful at growing PawPaws, I want to be able to keep track - with certainty - which tree is bearing which fruit.

These wonderful tags by SimplyYoursByDesign will help me do that.

Recommended Custom Garden Tags by SimplyYoursByDesign

I need long-lasting tags to identify my PawPaw trees. Also, I need customized tags - after all, who mass produces tags for PawPaw (Sunflower) versus PawPaw (Mango) trees? No one.

Luckily I found this shop on Etsy that makes customized tags.

With low expectations, I ordered two tags for the two PawPaw trees I just planted. I expected poor quality. Or paper-thin "metal". Happily, these tags have far exceeded my expectations. They are perfect!

Why I recommend these garden tags

customized - I was able to request (and received) both the tree name (PawPaw) and type (Sunflower)
communication and customer service - the shop owners messaged me to confirm what I was requesting - avoiding possible confusion (i.e did I want one PawPaw tag and one Sunflower tag, or two tags with PawPaw Sunflower)
I requested that they not send the included plant stakes - as I would be hanging these on the trees - and that request was honored
several choices in metal types/colors
good thickness - the tag is as thick as a dime
the words are permanently stamped into the metal
packaged in a simple but attractive manner
a mother/daughter/grand-daughter family owned business (how cool is that?!)
located in the US

shipped in a simple but attractive manner

There are only two very minor things about these tags/this shop that might cause someone concern. Neither of these things concerned me, but I feel that they should be mentioned.

the corner designs on the tags are random (for example: the bee & tree and the frog & sun on my tags)
a bit of time passed before I received my order

Because the items are customized, I did not receive my items immediately. It looks like I ordered on June 4th and the postmark on the envelope was June 19th. In my opinion, that was an expected amount of time for a custom order. Unfortunately, in such an instant gratification culture, some folks may not want to wait. The good news is that the shop owners clearly list their current production time on their policies page so you can decide if you can stand the wait.

my two customized PawPaw tags

Personally, I found it to be well worth the wait. It is refreshing to get exactly what you ask for. In fact, to get better than you asked for. Thank you, women at SimplyYoursByDesign, for these beautiful, durable, and custom PawPaw tree tags.

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The Review This! contributors enjoy their gardens and reviewing items and gifts related to gardening. To see more of our gardening recommendations, check out the articles under the gardening tab.

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