How funny that this is the first posting that I am responding to. I have been lurking around for a couple few months now, just soaking in the information. I am a first year veggie gardener in Tempe (Phoenix) Arizona and am doing a raised bed. I have a friend living with me while she goes through Chemo (bald as the day is long I might add) She brought a sprouter so I was looking up how to do it. WOW! Broccoli sprouts supposedly can arrest and or reverse breast cancer... lots of studies. Got mine from Amazon and they are very prolific! Obviously we are not depending on that, or she wouldn't be bald... but it's fun - quick - very satisfying for a quick 'planting fix' and they actually taste really good! Interestingly enough... I eat more of them than she does... People are funny.

Hi ronnie, Let me know if you still have any sprouts to trade. I may have a few things you'd like. I'd love the sprouts, but I'm sure I can find some other things from your have list if you still want to trade. Thanks! Diana

I have not read all the posts, there's lots of them, possibly i'm repeating what people have already said. In my experience, chickens are not fond of beans in general I have fed them my mung sprouts that started to go off, some chickend will eat them delightedly others not interested. You'll have to find out. Use a small amount from bulk in a store to find out what they think. Chicken mixes often have peas, these are softer and easier to digest, i believe they are split. For protein you could try a few 'pseudo cereals' These are plants similar to grains which are not actually grasses. As they are not grasses, some have complete proteins. As vegetarians will know, neither grains or beans are a complete protein. They both contain amino acids (beans also contain a lot of starch which is a carbohydrate) and when combined can make a complete protein. (hence the grain and pea mixture) Crops which do have complete proteins of varying quality are: amaranth, quinoa, hemp, sunflower and buckwheat. In most countries you aren't going to be able to grow hemp in your garden though it is one of the best things for them with it's essential fatty acids. Giving them some flax, which is also easy to grow in cold places, will boost the omega 3 content of their eggs. Amaranth is one of the most productive things you can probably grow in a cold place, it is a weed and very tolerant. Lambsquarters is closely related and also good, not as prolific. If you get bulk amaranth it will usually sprout. My chickens love these, though i am doubtful that quinoa is good for them in large doses. Incans rinsed it quite a lot to remove the saponin coating, although birds have digestive systems much more tolerant of these seed coatings, seeds being one of their main foods. It is reportedly hard to grow at low altitudes, i have not tried very hard. Sunflowers are also excellent for their oil in the diet, just give them the heads as you may do for wild birds. The best source of protein for chickens is bugs, they eat al ot of these in the wild. Consider growing meal worms for them, my husband and i war getting into this soon. He raised them as a kid to feed the family iguana, they are quite simple, they are actually the larva of a beetle. They need some vegative matter to eat, like clean compost (vegetable trimmings and such, not cooked leftovers, the chickens will probably eat those anyway) and some sawdust. There are more details but in in general it is pretty easy. He has not tried it on a really large scale so we'll see. Would share some links with you but he has them, i don't know where he's been researching. There is some info on the web and also books on raising them for chickens, maybe i'll track them down later.

Yep, Bonnnie, buying seed in quantity is definitely the way to go . . . (have I said that somewhere before?? ;o) I have used the jar and cheese cloth method with good success - everything from alfalfa to mung beans (broccoli & radish sprouts are sooo good with cream cheese in a simple sandwich :o). A key is making sure you don't have a "puddle" left standing in your jar. It works to put the jar at an angle in the dish drainer. You can also buy a simple little plastic basket in a covered plastic bowl at the Asian markets. I live so far from these so-called health food stores, I don't know what their prices are . . . But, Johnny's has seed in every size package imaginable. Some are especially for sprouts, Azura! digitS'