Microgreens have exploded in popularity in recent years as a nutritional powerhouse ingredient. But these tiny seedlings are typically harvested just 1-3 weeks after sprouting, leaving many to wonder – can microgreens grow into full-size plants? In this article we’ll explore the growth cycle of microgreens and reveal their untapped potential to transform from nibble-sized shoots into fully matured vegetables and herbs.
What Are Microgreens?
Microgreens are young seedlings of herbs and vegetables that are picked right after their first true leaves appear. They usually grow to be one to three inches tall, and popular types include arugula, sunflower, pea, radish, and broccoli. Compared to mature plants, microgreens have a lot more vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants than mature plants. Chefs want to use them because they are tender and have strong flavors.
The Stages of Microgreen Growth
Microgreens undergo 3 key phases of growth
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Germination – The seed sprouts and the first leaves (cotyledons) emerge.
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Seedling: The cotyledons fully open up, and the first real leaves appear. This is the ideal stage to harvest microgreens.
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Maturation: The plant keeps getting older, adding more leaves and stems, and eventually flowers and seeds if it isn’t picked.
Microgreens can definitely grow into full-size plants if they are given enough time to do so. But they are usually picked for food when they are still seedlings.
What Happens When Microgreens Grow to Maturity?
If you can resist the urge to snip those seedlings, here’s what happens as your microgreens keep growing:
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Plant size increases from 1-3 inches to full maturity.
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Stems and leaves elongate and toughen.
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Flavor profile evolves to resemble the mature plant.
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Nutrient density per gram declines as the plant gets larger.
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Time from planting to harvest extends from 2-3 weeks to several months.
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More space is needed to accommodate plant growth.
Benefits of Letting Microgreens Mature
Allowing microgreens to fully develop offers some advantages:
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Grow full vegetables and herbs at home.
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Save money on buying mature plant seeds.
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Experience the flavor and texture changes during growth.
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Add visual interest with plants at varying stages.
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Enjoy nutritional diversity as nutrients transform over time.
Drawbacks of Letting Microgreens Grow
However, there are also some potential drawbacks:
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Plants lose their signature tender crunch.
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Nutrient density significantly decreases.
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Vibrant microgreen flavors mellow out.
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More time, space and care is required.
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Higher disease, pest and mold risks.
Tips for Growing Microgreens to Maturity
If you want to experiment with maturing your microgreens, follow these tips:
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Use adequate lighting as plants get taller.
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Transplant into larger containers or garden beds.
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Maintain optimal water, nutrients, airflow and temperature.
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Monitor closely and address any pest or disease issues promptly.
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Harvest outer leaves to encourage continual growth.
The Verdict: Should You Grow Microgreens to Maturity?
Microgreens are intentionally grown for an early harvest, but they can keep maturing into full plants if left uncut. This transition alters their flavor, texture and nutritional profile compared to microgreens. With proper care, growing microgreens to maturity can be an interesting experiment. But whether it’s worthwhile depends on your goals – microgreen flavors or mature greens!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can microgreens regrow after cutting?
Some varieties of microgreens can regrow after cutting, but many are too fragile and experience stunted regrowth. It’s best to start fresh with new seeds each time.
Why are microgreens more nutritious than mature greens?
Microgreens contain the same total nutrients concentrated in a smaller plant. So you’d have to eat the entire mature plant to get the same level of nutrients found in microgreens.
How often do microgreens need watering?
Microgreens need their water level checked and replenished daily. Consistent moisture is essential for germination and growth.
How long do microgreens last after harvest?
Harvested microgreens typically last 10-14 days when properly stored in the refrigerator. Staggering harvests extends your enjoyment of fresh microgreens.
Can any vegetable be grown from microgreen to mature plant?
Most common veggies and herbs can fully mature from microgreens. Some hybrids or sterile varieties may not be capable of flowering and producing seeds though.
Conclusion
Microgreens hold the potential to grow into full-sized vegetables and herbs since they are simply young versions of these plants. However, intentionally growing microgreens using shallow trays and dense planting often restricts their ability to mature. With enough space, light and nutrients from seed onward, microgreens can fully develop given the right conditions. Whether to grow microgreens for early harvest or mature plants depends on your goals and resources. But experimenting with their growth can be an educational and rewarding endeavor.
Do microgreens keep growing?
In answer to the first question, microgreens don’t keep growing. They will stop growing at some point in their life because they won’t be able to reach their full size. Again, let us go back to how microgreens are grown.
If you skip ahead to the part where the microgreens are already competing for nutrients in the thin layer of soil you planted their seeds in, these plants won’t have the energy to keep growing because they are already in a very stressful situation where they want to grow but can’t because you didn’t give them the right climate.
So, in that sense, the microgreens will stay as microgreens or at the stage where they are ready to be harvested because of how stressed they are. They are too malnourished at this point in their lifespan to keep on growing as they have all but used up all of the energy they had stored up when they were seeds.
We already told you that cutting the microgreens off from the rest of the plant will kill the roots because it is too stressful. If you don’t pick the microgreens, the same thing will happen; they are already too stressed to keep growing and living, and they will die out in the end. So, in that sense, even if you don’t harvest the microgreens, they will stop growing and eventually die.
In the same way, a harvested microgreen will also prevent the roots from ever-growing a new plant again due to the stress. In other words, microgreens are merely one-hit wonders that will never grow and will eventually die out as a result of the stressful situation they are placed under.
What if you give the microgreens more soil and nutrients?
So, assuming that the microgreens have reached their full size as microgreens and are ready to be harvested, can you transport them to your garden and give them enough soil and nutrients for them to continue to grow?
Probably not. The reason is that microgreens have already been stressed out too much at that stage in their lives to actually grow more even if they were given enough soil and nutrients after their growth has halted. You have done too much damage to them to the point that they won’t ever start growing again even if you wanted them to.
It’s a different story if you planted the seeds for the purpose of actually growing mature plants. As long as you give the seeds enough space, nutrients, and soil from the very beginning, they will have the capacity to surpass their microgreen stage and eventually grow into full-sized plants.
But since we are talking about seeds that are planted for the purpose of growing microgreens, then no, they probably won’t ever reach their mature sizes as plants. Theoretically, the seeds should have the potential to grow into full-sized plants but the fact that you grew them as microgreens will take that potential away from them.