Barley Grain Grass Sprout Seeds (NOT to TAS)
Untreated whole barley grain (Hordeum vulgare), hull on, for growing barley grass, from 100 g to 4 kg. This product cannot be shipped to Tasmania. WA customers: maximum 10 kg.
About 30 grains to the gram.
Barley grass is the young leaf of barley, grown thickly on a shallow tray and cut with scissors for juicing. Its blades are broader and a lighter green than wheatgrass. A tray is usually ready to cut 6 to 10 days from the start of the soak. Supermarket pearl barley has had its outer layers polished off and will not grow; this is whole grain with the hull on.
How to grow barley grass on a tray
- Rinse the grain and pick out any stones or broken grains. Allow about 270 g for a 28 x 53 cm tray, or enough to cover the tray's base in one even, dense layer.
- Cover it with two to three times its volume of cool drinking water and soak for about 6 hours in a warm kitchen, up to 12 on a cold bench.
- Drain, then rinse and drain every 8 to 12 hours in a jar or colander, left upside down so the grain drains, until most grains show a tiny white root tip.
- Spread the grain in one dense, even layer on damp seed raising mix or a coir mat and press it gently onto the surface. Cover the tray and keep it dim until the shoots reach 4 to 6 cm, usually about 2 days.
- Uncover it and move it into bright, indirect light. Water the mix from below each day and keep air moving.
- Cut the blades with clean scissors 2 to 3 cm above the mix when they stand 10 to 15 cm tall.
Store cut grass dry and sealed in the fridge at 5°C or colder for about a week at most; a fresh cut juices best. Mould on the grain, slime or a sour smell end a tray: compost the grain and mix, and wash and sanitise the tray.
Food safety
Sprouted grain is a raw sprout and can carry Salmonella, E. coli and Listeria, even when grown with care at home. The NSW Food Authority advises cooking all sprouts thoroughly before eating. People who are pregnant, aged 70 or over, children under 5 and anyone with a weakened immune system should not eat raw sprouts or drink raw, unpasteurised barley grass juice. Wash, rinse and sanitise trays, jars and tools between batches. Potting mix can carry Legionella bacteria: follow the warning on the bag, wet the mix down, wear gloves and a P2 mask, and wash your hands afterwards.
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