About Growing Grains

Numa Agasa asked about growing grains.  Many people think their gardens can only have fruits or vegetables, but in fact grains are very easy to grow.  Some are a bit more difficult to process, but fortunately we have Mooners’ Mill who will do that for you if it gets too difficult.  The question is whether you want “crunchy or green?”  In other words, bringing the plants to maturity offers the hard grains, but that comes at a higher cost than harvesting young plants at the microgreen stage, which is cheaper and faster for the same amount of nutrition, but not great for making flower.  Here is my take:

Microgreen harvesting of grasses (that produce grains, like wheatgrass) can be done on a small scale and they can be grown hydroponically. They can be harvested in 7 to 10 days. You don’t need a lot of space.  You can start out with a tray of any size.  But assuming you want “crunchy,” a plot of about 1 square meter will yield enough flour for a loaf of bread, but it will take about 4 to 6 months from planting to harvest. And for many of the grain producing grasses, you need to control the temperatures in the cellar to simulate the four seasons back on Earth. 

The Muni’s Office of Food Production has wonderful resources to help you.  And of course, you can speak with any of the Farm Agents to get advice and guidance as well.

Site preparation:  I have heard that you can grow mature grains using hydroponics, but as a beginner, your likelihood of success is low.  It really needs soil, and for us that means you must do more work.  The Office of Food Productions sells ground regolith which can be combined with brown water and manure to create a suitable soil.  Unfortunately, Food Production will not provide you with a premixed soil.  No one really likes that job.  Seeds can be purchased from Food Production. The types of grains that are easy to grow include:

1. Wheat: We have winter varieties, and spring varieties, that you can pick depending on where you are in the temperature cycle in your garden. Hard red wheats are great for baking and can grow in both winter and spring type temperatures.  Soft Red winter and White Wheats are good for pastry dough.
2. Barley: This grain is normally added to soups, pilafs, and casseroles. If made into flour, it is low in gluten.  Barley has a hard hull that must be removed.  A good thing is that it can be planted in spring or fall temperatures.
3. Corn: We have a soft variety to eat from the cob. For making corn meal, you need to plant a dry corn, but do not plant both species at the same time, because they will cross pollinate. Corn plants require a lot of heat for simulated summer temperatures, and the soil needs to be rich with nutrients. 
4. Oats: This “superfood” is high in protein and low in carbs. They normally have a tough hull which is difficult to remove, so Food Production sells a hull-less variety to make it easier for us.  Oats need more moisture, a cool climate, and well-drained soil.
5. Buckwheat: This is not a cereal grain, but it is often added to bread and mixed with various prepared foods. It matures in 75 days, and it can grow in poor soil.
6. Rye: This grows best in cold wet climates and can be grown at the same time as winter wheat. Rye will grow in poor soil.
7. Millet: This is a name for a variety of species of cereal grains that originated in Asia and Africa.  These are the small shiny yellow seeds you would see in birdfeed back on Earth.  They mature in 30 days and can be grown at warm and medium temperatures and with poor soils.  When cooked, they have a subtle nutty flavor.
8. Spelt: This behaves similar to wheat. It has a nutty flavor and highly nutritious. It is used in breads, flour, and pasta.  It can grow in poor soils, but it should be planted in fall temperatures followed by a winter cycle, and then harvested in the spring cycle.

Let me know if you have any questions, and like I mentioned above, contact the Office of Food Production for more information and advice.