How to Grow Microgreens on Jute Microgreen Pads

Growing microgreens on jute microgreen pads is a fast, easy and clean way to grow America’s favorite kitchen crop.  Jute microgreen mats are 100 percent organic and natural, made from fine fibers from the Jute plant. Jute mats are a thick felt like fabric, providing a nice cozy damp environment for fast seed germination.  They hold water nicely and also drain well so they are never soggy.  Roots readily grow right through the jute, and into your reservoir tray seeking water.  They are also easy to cut into custom shapes or sizes with a pair of sturdy scissors.

Using Jute Microgreen Seed pads for growing microgreens

• Wet the jute mat thoroughly to start.  The dry jute pad may resist water at first. We recommend using warm water and spraying it thoroughly, or soaking it for a few minutes before placing in your tray. When the jute pad is wet, it will change to a darker color.
• A little H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide – drug store brands are fine, use full strength) will set the pad to be a sterile growing surface and reduce chances of mold.  Just spray the entire pad after its wet, let it sit for a few minutes and rinse it off.
• Rinse your seeds well before sowing.  You can also use some H2O2 on your seeds to kill any mold spores that may be present there.  If you are growing with a seed that requires soaking (pea, mung beans etc)  be sure to rinse those as well.
• Sow your microgreen seeds as evenly as possible across the damp jute pads.  At this point, we recommend using a sprayer nozzle to wet the seeds thoroughly.  Excess water should drain off into your reservoir tray.  Press the seed lightly into the jute pad, Then, make sure the water in the reservoir tray is just below the actual jute pad and not letting the pad sit or soak in water.
• Cover your trays and place in a dark space.

Bring them back into light at the third day, you should have good germination underway.  Mist heavily all over and replace the water in the reservoir tray. This should be done daily.  You can also spray the germinated seeds with your spray nozzle in your kitchen.  Just be sure to drain off excess water in the reservoir. Always keep water in the lower reservoir no matter what.  As your Microgreen roots start to fill the reservoir, they will take up more and more water.  When your microgreens are starting to stand up, you’ll stop top watering and just maintain water in the lower tray.

The best things about Jute seed pads….

Growing your microgreens on jute fiber grow mats is a very clean way to grow.  You don’t have to worry with messy soils, and you don’t have to worry about soil splashing up on the microgreens as you water.  Jute pads make it easy to harvest too.  The seed is firmly planted in the jute pad and you can handle the the greens anyway you need to cut them without pulling soil laden roots out of the tray. Jute mats are tough and will last even through long growing cycles. They truly are the best growing mats for microgreens.

Can you reuse Jute mats for microgreens?

Probably not commercially but for home use yes! They will be full of roots so you need to sun dry them to the point that the roots are crispy. Then just roll them around a brush them off.  A dose of H2O2 should sterilize enough for reuse.  Used Jute mats can even be used as rags to clean your trays, wash your car.. you’ll find uses for them!  When they are truly spent, throw them in the compost pile, use in the bottom of pots to help maintain moisture or hold soil in.

Looking for  Microgreens suppliers?

HydroPro Sales  provides microgreen growing supplies to the public and pro microgreens growers. Click the image to go to our microgeen supplies page. We sell any quantity of jute microgreen grow mats/pads, from single packs of 10, to pallet loads (400 packs per pallet) to  full container loads.  Private label and custom sizes are available.  Jute geotextile erosion control products made to your specifications are also available .  This product is OMRI listable for organic use (you must list your own label)   For info on purchasing please contact us.  Click picture to the right to visit the sales page.