Gardening in panel apartments without balconies – Pesti Farm microgreens that you can now save through Munch

What are microgreens?

Microgreens are nothing more than young plant shoots. Numerous vegetable varieties are suitable for this type of cultivation and can reach a harvestable state in as little as 10 days. They have extremely high nutritional content, contain no external contaminants due to their short lifespan, and have a very intense flavor characteristic of the plant in question.

What microgreens are worth growing?

• lettuce varieties,
• spinach,
• curly kale,
• arugula,
• Asian salad greens (e.g. Pak choi, tsatsoi, etc.),
• red-veined spinach,
• chard,
• mustard varieties
• sprouts are worth cultivating.

Ingredients for cultivation

Microgreen seeds: You can buy seeds at garden centers or larger retailers that also sell gardening supplies. There are already pre-mixed varieties available, but if you know exactly what type of microgreens you want to grow, you can also buy them individually.

Soil: Where you can buy seeds, you'll likely find potting soil as well. You don't need to look for special soil, as even the simplest potting soil works perfectly. If possible, choose fertilizer-free soil so your microgreens are as natural and free from artificial substances as possible.

Tray: You'll need something to grow your microgreens in. There are trays made specifically for this, but if you have an old tray of suitable size, that works great too – or you could even use an elongated medicine cabinet or even an egg carton to provide a comfortable environment for your future microgreens. Just make sure you can punch a few holes in the bottom so water can flow freely.

Light source: There are two ways to do this – natural or artificial. For the natural method, you just need a windowsill that gets frequent sunlight. If you choose the artificial route, you can also use light panels.

Water: The last thing, of course, is water. The most effective way to water your microgreens is with a spray bottle – they don't need much water and the spray bottle just sprinkles water on them, so the plants won't be sitting in water.

A few hours of green DIY and you're done

1. Choose your planting tray and cut a few holes in the bottom.
2. Fill your container with potting soil.
3. Thoroughly moisten the soil and scatter the seeds on it. You don't need to be dense, just about 10-15 cm apart from each other. Using a water sprayer, moisten the scattered seeds, then sprinkle a very thin layer of soil over them.
4. Keep the soil and seeds moist every day.
5. Within a few days, young shoots will appear – water them regularly! Depending on the variety, you'll see them on your plate in about 4-6 weeks.

Master of microgreens - spotlight on Pesti Farm

At Pesti Farm, we use innovative vertical farming. Thanks to this, we can minimize the land area needed for cultivation from hectares to just a few square meters, reduce water consumption by approximately 90% compared to traditional farming, and guarantee that vegetables of consistent and perfect quality reach your table year-round in a controlled environment. We grow our microgreens in the heart of Budapest, shortening the journey from farm straight to your door, so you can get them on the very day of harvest with the least possible harmful emissions. Every plant is harvested and inspected by hand, ensuring perfect quality and freshness. When you buy from Pesti Farm, you're buying directly from the producer, from us, with no intermediaries.

Bence Gedai - Pesti Farm founder

Bence Gedai, 26 years old, studied engineering informatics at BME, then worked as a developer in several places, and then came an opportunity to start an event organizing company for IT professionals. I led this company for more than two years, achieving great success (for example JunctionX Budapest: 400 people, 40+ countries, partners like Google, Microsoft, Bosch, OTP, Nokia, Tesco, Telekom, BlackRock, etc.), but with the arrival of the virus, our market essentially became impossible.

Around last year I encountered the concept of vertical farming and it already piqued my interest, but I didn't have the capacity alongside events to delve deeper into it. This summer I dug deeper and founded Pesti Farm amidst many disapproving looks.

I grew the first microgreens at home on a small cabinet I had made together, not with much success. Then gradually the harvest became more and more predictable, I invested in a larger shelving system, started growing various types of plants, and then from one moment to the next I started understanding the processes, started selling everywhere…