Tray Sprouters

The Being Fare is an absolute 'bargain buy' to get you off to a start. We currently do not sell this sprouter. The Being Fare sprouter will be available in some health food shops, as it is distributed by most whole-food distributors. The main drawback of the Being Fare system is that it has perfect fitting trays, so other than the uppermost tray, your sprouts will not be getting much oxygen. Additionally, the tray height feels a little tight. Ultimately, good sprouts will require more effort from the user.

The Croq Punch sprouter offers all the top features mentioned above, and still at a great price. We currently do not sell this sprouter, primarily because it is a little fragile and broke most of the time in transit. The system is not fragile when in use however. You will need to seek this system out in health food shops of the South, as at current it is distributed only by Infinity Foods who are in Brighton. The Croq Punch shares a similar footprint to the Being Fare, but with a greater growing height, and trays that stack at 45 degrees to each other, the user intervention will be a little less.

The Bio Snacky is by far the most commonly available sprouter both on and off-line. We currently do not sell this sprouter, and we're not shy about telling you why:

• very poor drainage leading to seeds sitting in dirty water, eventually rotting
• small seeds (such as alfalfa) get lodged in its irrigation channels, compounding the above problem
• zero aeration due to firm fitting trays AND a lid - remember oxygen is the main activator in sprouting,
• circular shape is an un-economic use of counter space,
• very low growing height, least of any sprouter we know of
• more expensive than previously mentioned systems, expensive for what it is

Is there anything going for the Bio Snacky? In a UK market yes, it's well distributed and well packaged, something the Being Fare and Croq Punch are not.

The Geo Sprouter is very similar in features to the Croq Punch, but with a different shape and higher price. We currently do not sell this sprouter, but it is far more available than the Croq Punch, and is easily found online.

The Easy Health sprouter is a large two tier system (32cm x 24cm) which claims to grow sprouts and grasses. The pictures of grass growing look good, but we can't help but question the success of growing grass hydroponically in such an uncontrolled system (which will also receive run-off from the sprouts above), so it's possible the instructions simply tell you to use soil. The addition of a protective cover to limit oxygen strikes us as aesthetic design without sprouting know-how. We have yet to test this system ourselves though, nor have we found any feedback on it.

There are a few other uncommon sprouters out there, typically similar to one of the above systems. Always remember that trays systems demand tender locing care to varying degrees.

Sprout bags

The sprouting bag system is simple, you place seeds in the bag, pull the tie to close the opening, either rinse or soak the entire bag, and then hang it up to drain.

Also some custom solutions are available the only sprout bag available consistently that we know of is marketed by "Sproutman". The big thing we like about the Sproutman sproutbag is that it's made from hemp cloth.

This system of sprouting is best suited to legumes, grains, and larger seeds in general. Small seeds would be very difficult. Aeration isn't perfect, which is probably why the instructions tell you to massage and shuffle the sprouts around when it comes to rinsing them.

Some users love these, but many dislike accommodating a hanging wet bag.

Automatic sprouters

The popularity of sprouting led to the invention of automatic sprouters for the home. The single feature that makes these sprouters 'automatic' is that they water the crop for you. This automation offers the hope of growing wheatgrass hydroponically (with water only and no soil).

The Freshlife automatic sprouter is a cylindrical two tier unit offering just under 100 square inches of growing space. The sprouter can be expanded to house a further 2 tiers, which offer a total growing space of roughly 200 square inches, giving you a cost per inch of 81 pence.

This system mimics commercial sprouting systems. A pump draws water from a small reservoir under the bottom tier of seeds, and sprinkler deposits this onto the top tier of seeds. The setup makes for a compact solution.

Sprinkling water uses a lot of water, which is unnoticeable as the water is constantly being recycled. In commercial systems, where they too recycle water to reduce their expenses, water filtration is incorporated before reintroduction to the sprouts. The water is also infused with ozone. The lack of these two systems in recycled water causes dirt to build up rapidly, dirt which is being used to water the crop automatically, perhaps whilst you're out at work.

The most commonly noted feedback from users of the Freshlife is with regards to cleaning, considered by its owners to be a chore. The runoff from seeds can be very dirty, and eventually thick, blocking up various parts of the system. Unless the water is changed very regularly, particularly in the early days of germination, the system becomes unpleasant to use and difficult to clean.

The Freshlife can grow wheatgrass, but with its high sides and non removable sprouting platform, handling the crop for single servings is difficult. Also, it is therefore not possible to 'green' your grass without either taking the entire unit outdoors, or removing the grass from its cosy home.

The Easygreen automatic sprouter is a LARGE unit. For some this may be too much - it's 24 inches deep and will fill the depth of your kitchen worktop. In total a single unit houses a whopping 225 square inches of growing space, with the luxurious benefit of removable growing cartridges, so you can simply pop the cartridge in your fridge without handling this high yield of sprouts. (So please note that with every other system mentioned on this page, you must remove the sprouts from the sprouter by hand picking them).

Although the Easygreen appears very big, its size is designed specifically to cater for a daily yield of 1 ounce / 30 ml of wheatgrass juice, so in fact many households choose to 'stack up' 3 Easygreen units, using 2 for grasses and 1 for sprouts. The removable growing trays make handling grass very easy, as does the option of 5 small trays (supplied as standard) or a single large tray (optional extra).

What's also different about the Easygreen is that it uniquely permits growing in soil as well as hydroponically. This is made possible because the Easygreen system drains ALL water to waste, not an ounce of water is recycled. This favourable advance is made economically viable by the major innovation of the Easygreen - the mist generator.

The mist generator sprays the crop with a fine mist, providing both a cooling breeze and abundant amounts of oxygen to the sprouts. These factors are more important than water, and its massive 5 litre reservoir will last over 30 hours. If this isn't enough, an automatic filling system is available so you really can go on holiday. Of course, drainage is therefore a requirement, and this can be done in a number if ways.

• simply place the system near a sink, and water drains through a tube into your sink.
• place the system near a waste pipe and have a plumber install a trap for the drainage tube
• place the system anywhere else, and drain into a bucket.... don't forget to empty your bucket.

If drainage scares you off it needn't do, the quality gain of your crop is well worth it.

We mentioned stacking - the Easygreen can be stacked up to 5 high, so for people who wish to grow a daily yield of wheatgrass, and a good volume of sprouts each day, we offer a reduction for each additional Easygreen you buy, saving you up to £39 per unit. This brings your cost per inch down from 66 pence to around 50 pence.

Lastly, there is no manual cleaning of the Easygreen, you simply run the machine without sprouts - the mist generator reaches every part of the machine performing a complete disinfecting cycle without user intervention.

Go-Sprout

This is a new system which we will be making available very soon. Priced at £25 it is capable of producing up to 500g of sprouts per batch.

The Go-Sprout is dual flask system that ingeniously uses the heat of germination to provided a humidified airflow for the sprouts without drying them out. You remember how we keep saying oxygen is important.

The benefit to the user is that the sprouts require NO daily rinsing like all the systems above, which is amazing. You simply soak the seeds in an inner flask, which you lift up 12 hours later to drain. Then, reassemble the system and come back for sprouts in a few days.

Small enough to travel with and fit in a fridge door, we think everyone should have at least two of these. The only minor drawback to this system is that it is not compartmentalised, so you can only grow one type of sprout per system cycle. Other than this, we recommend you Go-Sprout.