SEED ORDERS SHIP IN 1-3 BUSINESS DAYS

The 10-Day Harvest: How to Grow a Vitamin-Packed Salad on Your Windowsill

It happens every year around this time. The "Winter Blues" set in.

You look out the window at the gray sky and the frozen ground, and you feel that itch. You want to dig in the dirt. You want to smell fresh greenery. You want to eat a vegetable that hasn't spent three weeks on a truck.

But the calendar says you have to wait until May.

We have good news: The calendar is wrong.

You can start a garden today, on your kitchen counter, and be harvesting fresh greens in less than two weeks.

Welcome to the world of Microgreens.

What Are Microgreens?

Microgreens aren't a special type of GMO mutant plant. They are just regular vegetables (like kale, radishes, or arugula) that are harvested very young—usually when they only have two leaves.

Why harvest them so small?

  1. Speed: They are ready to eat in 10–14 days.
  2. Flavor: They are flavor bombs. A tiny sprout of arugula packs more peppery punch than a full-grown leaf.
  3. Nutrition: Studies have shown that microgreens can contain up to 40 times more nutrients than their mature counterparts. It’s like eating a multivitamin that tastes like a salad.

How to Build Your Windowsill Farm

You don't need expensive grow lights or hydroponic systems. You just need a sunny window.

1. The Setup

Get a shallow container (a plastic takeout container with holes poked in the bottom works perfectly). Fill it with an inch of organic potting soil.

2. The Seeding

This is where it gets fun. Unlike the garden, where you space plants far apart, here you want a crowd. Sprinkle your seeds heavily across the soil surface—imagine you are putting sprinkles on a donut. You want a dense carpet of green.

3. The Wait

Mist the seeds with water, cover them with a paper towel for a day or two to keep them damp, and wait. Once they sprout, remove the cover and put them in your sunniest window. Keep the soil moist.

4. The Harvest

In about 10 days, when the plants are 2-3 inches tall and have their first set of "true leaves," take a pair of scissors and snip them off right above the soil. Rinse and eat!

Top 3 Varieties to Start With

Not all seeds make good microgreens (tomatoes and peppers are a no-go). Here are the best heirlooms for your first batch:

  • The Speed Demon: Radishes.
    If you are impatient, start here. Radish microgreens grow incredibly fast and add a spicy, crunchy kick to tacos and avocado toast.
  • The Salad Base: Kale or Broccoli.
    These are mild, crunchy, and packed with vitamins. They taste much fresher and sweeter than the fibrous mature leaves you buy at the store.
  • The Zest: Arugula.
    Heirloom Arugula microgreens are intensely nutty and peppery. They turn a boring sandwich into a gourmet meal.

The Verdict?

You don't have to spend the winter staring at a frozen garden. With a few packets of seeds and a little bit of soil, you can have a fresh harvest every single week of the year.

Start your counter-top garden: Shop our Heirloom Collection and grab a few packets of Radish, Kale, and Arugula to get started.

Back to News