From: Ben Pittenger (benpittenger@earthlink.net)
Date: Sat Sep 20 2003 - 07:24:10 PDT
Message-ID: <15609252.1064067850733.JavaMail.root@bigbird.psp.pas.earthlink.net> Date: Sat, 20 Sep 2003 06:24:10 -0800 (GMT-08:00) From: Ben Pittenger <benpittenger@earthlink.net> Subject: Wheatgrass & etc.
For wheat berries I suggest Rainbow Grocery, the big co-op at 1745 Folsom, 415-863-8955, or any other food co-op in the area. Rainbow also has whole rye and barley which should be viable, though I don't know their germination times. Rainbow carries such seeds in bulk. If you aren't sure what to get, the employees are very helpful.
I don't know what your intended use is, but they also have alfalfa and radish seeds which sprout very quickly. (24- 36 hours) Others I have used with my students for observing germination and early growth are fenugreek and corn (the corn takes a few days, but comes out quickly). They have a broad selection of other possibilities, too.
I have done this in my classroom. I have my students observe them, soak them overnight, then keep the seeds between layers of damp paper towel in a dark cupboard. They observe them daily, or every other day for a week to 10 days (or more, if they want to do so after the class is done with the project). For the last couple or few days we keep them where they can get sunlight. It's quite doable with large aluminum trays. I mark off the paper towels in grids and assign each group four sections (one for each student). I have done this with as many as 190 students doing the observations. They love it! The pitfalls are letting the towels dry out, and mold. Keep an eye on them!
Good luck,
Ben Pittenger
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