Re: dirtless

[Guest guest]

said:

Hi Marilyn,

I have a couple of questions. I assume you made the

larger sized

mister. Did you order the all parts recommended in the

sprouter plans

or make substitutions?

On the subject of sunflowers. Are hulled or unhulled

seeds used in

the automatic misting sprouter?

It dawned on me one difference since I had consistent

success

sprouting sunflowers in Colorado. Back then I was

saving money by

buying bird seed rather than getting it out of the

bulk bins. I am

trying a batch of " black oil " sunflower bird seed as

an experiment.

The seeds are smaller and the hull is thinner. I'll

let you know the

results. I also want to try using grapefruit seed

extract as a mold

inhibitor.

Happy sprouting,

PS I'm up to my ears in wheat and barley grass this

week. ;-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi ,

I ordered my main parts for the automatic sprouter

from Arizona Mist and Orbit according to Val Archers

part numbers. I got the rest of the stuff at the local

hardware. Yes, I made the big one. Now I want three

more. But must get shelving.

Before I answer your questions let me tell you about

the sprouter. I got it up and running last Friday

night. Had to work out a lot of bug all week. My drain

kept plugging and the seeds would be underwater in the

morning. I think I finally got that fixed. There was

no vent and the water kept getting trapped. Tricky.

The other problem I'm having is with the brass and

stainless steel nozzles which only put out 1/2 gallon

per hour. It's a really fine mist until they get

plugged which is two or three of them every 24 to 36

hours. That's probably something with my hard water.

I'm getting used to removing and soaking just the

plugged ones in the solution that comes with the mist

management kit. No big deal now. But I have to use the

brass nozzles because I don't have enough brass and

stainless steel nozzles. Brass nozzles send out 1

gallon per hour. I'm ordering extra nozzles soon.

Other than that, it's wonderful. I have never in my

life grown sunflower sprouts, the black seeded type,

this fast and this evenly. (In the past a lot of them

damped off.) This is great because I'm feeding them to

my sick iguana and they are perking her right up.

She's been depressed all winter. Been anorexic lately

but various sprouts including the sunny seed sprouts

are making her look more alert. She is even gaining

weight. She ate three bowls of sprouts yesterday. More

than she ate in one day all winter!

I don't think you'll need any mold inhibitors with the

automatic sprouter. It actually correct a mold problem

that was developing in one of my wheat grass trays,

started before I got the automatic sprouter going. But

a friend of mine told me just this week that he was

able to grow garbanzos for the first time without mold

by soaking them in a solution of H2O2. I think the

solution is 1/4 tsp 35% to one pint. It's in one of

the books. Sproutman talks about hydrogen peroxide.

Hulled sunflower seeds are only good for one day of

sprouting in a jar. Soak 1-2 hours. Drain. Use the

next day after rinsing. They sprout that quick. They

get too oxidized if sprouted longer. Sunflowers you

want to green up need to be in the hull.

I'm up to my ears in wheat grass too. The drum cap off

my new Samson Juicer broke! :-( Can't juice a thing

without it. Glued it with gorilla glue, used the

juicer for three days, then it broke again. It's under

warranty and they are sending me a new part. In the

meanwhile I am giving my chickens whole trays of

grass. They love it, but they are also very happy for

the stubble they normally get. The grass seems to have

changed the taste of the eggs. Very delicious now.

Marilyn

=====

Luck is doing the right things,

in the right way, at the right time,

and attracting the things you want in life.

__________________________________________________