"Mud, flood, blossoms, and babies signal the arrival of spring..." is an excellent way to anticipate and welcome the start of every gardener's favorite season.
Quote and info adapted from one of my favorite sources, The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner: What To Do & When To Do It by Ann Larkin Hansen.
While the fashion world may not address the various styles that are seen on the farm, we farm girls know that we have a variety of shoes, boots, undergarments, pants, shirts, belts, hats, gloves, and scarves within our closets.
When choosing the perfect outfit(s) for the day on the farm, we not only need to consider how we look, of course, we need to consider biosecurity measures when dealing with various animals, the time of year and weather, the chores and tasks at hand, and the insurmountable laundry pile we will inevitably face at the end of the week.
The Shacket - a combination of the words shirt and jacket - is a hybrid crossover, oversized, flannel (sometimes with a hoodie) pop-culture, trendy take on a modern classic overgarment. Some confusion arises as to whether it derives from a late 20th century grunge era style or a long-time farm-girl's midwinter milking attire.
Picture courtesy of Amazon. This is how I like to THINK I look when I'm headed out to the coop and garden and barn; adorned in a trendy shacket and slick pair of jeans and pretty nails and hair.
However, this is often more on par for how I ACTUALLY look.
The year 2020 had many of us locked in our homes looking for projects to occupy our time. It turned out that some of our chickens found themselves in the same situation. We had a few ladies who went broody and wanted to be mamas. Little did we know how many chicks that year held for us.
This post contains graphic pictures and videos of chicks hatching and newly hatched.
In a previous post, on the joys of hatching chicks, I chronicled hatchings from 2019 where we allowed nature to take its course. With the craziness of 2020, and those previous girls still too young to lay, we decided to increase our flock by purchasing 6 more layers, not knowing our girls had many more chicks planned for us.
Microgreens are long, delicate greens grown over a couple weeks and then harvested by cutting the young seedlings at the base. Microgreens have a higher concentration of nutrients compared to the larger variety.
Sprouts are seeds that can germinate quickly in a few days when soaked in water and left in the dark. The entire sprout can be eaten including the seedling, radicles, and what remains of the seed.
Because the seeds for Sprouts are kept in warm, humid conditions, it is possible for bacteria to grow. This bacteria can cause the seed to allow for salmonella to lodge in the small cracks of the seed. This makes sprouts carry a higher risk of food poisoning. You can read more about sprouts and how to avoid food poisoning here.
Since Microgreens are grown for their tiny leaves above the soil, they carry a lower risk of food poisoning.
Referred to as a "superfood," Microgreens are a source of fibers, essential minerals, vitamins, and antioxidant compounds including: vitamins A, E, C and K, calcium, magnesium, iron, selenium and zinc. According to Schnelker, quoted in the blog, Banner Health, "They also come packed with phytonutrients and antioxidants that protect against certain diseases, support your immune system and help your gut microbiome healthy."
Banner Health also illustrates:
* a cup of red cabbage microgreens has three times more folate than mature red cabbage
* a cup of arugula microgreens has 100% more vitamin A than arugula
* radish microgreens have double the amount of calcium and are higher in omega 3's than radishes
* compared to broccoli, broccoli microgreens have a higher content of the antioxidant sulforaphane, which helps lower fasting blood glucose levels and can protect against heart disease and cancer
Since you eat them in small quantities, you might not see a big different in health. They can be costly as a pound can cost $30 or more. It may be more practical to eat 2-3 cups of vegetables a day.
I think it comes down to personal choice. If you enjoy having readily available greens to throw on top of a sandwich or salad or meal, then you may want to explore other ways to use them.
If you enjoy growing your own food or herbs at home, then microgreens could be easy and readily available as they can grow on a window ledge, porch, balcony, or indoor garden.
Penn State Extension, Banner Health, Microgreens
Urban Cultivator, Mighty Microgreen Recipes on Pinterest
