How to Grow Cilantro Microgreens

 

Things you need to grow Cilantro Microgreens

1. Cilantro seeds - 10g
2. 10 x 20 Microgreens tray x 2 - without holes
3. 10 x 20 Microgreens tray x 1 - with holes
4. 6 cups of coco coir
5. Grow lights (or sunlight)

Steps to grow Cilantro Microgreens

1. Stack a 10x20 tray with holes on top of the 10x20 tray that does not have holes.
2. Add 5 cups of coco coir to the tray with holes, leaving some room for more soil to be added later.
3. Sprinkle the Cilantro seeds evenly, and cover the seeds with a thin layer of coco coir just enough so you cannot see the seeds.
4. Mist water once or twice a day, keeping the soil wet but not soggy.
5. Stack another 10x20 tray on top to create a dark and humid environment for the seeds to germinate. Add a 5 pound weight on top of the tray.
6. On Day 6, seeds will be germinated. Start bottom watering from now on, and keep it under a grow light until harvest day.
7. Harvest any day between day 13 and day 17, when you start to see some true leaves.

 

 

Alternate methods to grow Cilantro Microgreens

1. If you don’t have a 10x20 seed tray, you could use any container you like.
2. If you are planning on using soil as the growth medium and it has sticks or clumps, make sure to get rid of the big ones.
3. If you do not have grow lights, you can use the natural sunlight to grow your Cilantro microgreens. Just make sure they get enough light by placing them in a sunny windowsill or a south facing window.

Tips on growing Cilantro microgreens

• If you have whole cilantro seeds, use a roller or a weight to split it or else your germination will be late and therefore you will have to wait longer (upto a month) for harvest.
• Soaking the cilantro seeds does not seem to have any effect on cilantro microgreens germination, growth or harvest. It is better to skip this step.
• Cilantro microgreens are very prone to damping off and molding so make sure you do not overwater.
• Cilantro microgreens will also turn weak and droop if you are underwater, although it does bounce back after you water them.
• We only keep cilantro microgreens under weighted blackout for 6 days for the purpose of improving germination rate. Once germinated, we do not continue the blackout as cilantro already grows tall on its own. Keeping it under blackout will make them grow way taller and they will start to fall off.
• You could add a scoop of some fertilizer with coco coir to give the seedlings a boost, but it is not required.
• You can expect a harvest of about 95g of Cilantro microgreens from 10gms of Cilantro seeds.

Cilantro Harvest

Cilantro microgreens start germinating from the first day itself, and are ready for harvest by day 7. Cilantro is lightweight so you wont get as much of a yield as you would expect from crops like broccoli or sunflower.

 

A typical Cilantro harvest is expected to be 10x times the weight of the seed. For example, if you use 10g of Cilantro seeds, you can expect a harvest of about 100g.

Business Tips for Selling Cilantro Microgreens

If you are growing cilantro microgreens to sell, you can charge a high amount per gram, however, they are not necessarily the most profitable crop to grow. You can make a profit if you have enough clients who want cilantro microgreens. You can sell in 1 ounce packs as a small amount of cilantro goes a long way.

Health Benefits of Cilantro Microgreens

• Cilantro (as well as red cabbage, and radish) contain up to 40 times higher levels of vital nutrients than their mature counterparts.
• Cilantro microgreens had three times more beta-carotene than mature cilantro
• Cilantro microgreens are one of the richest in terms of lutein and beta-carotene. These nutrients are needed for skin, eyes and fighting cancer.

 

Also check out how you can grow cilantro/coriander plants at home.