best way to grow wheat grass?

[tToke]

I'm looking into buying a juicer for my mom and gramps.
I have a decent indoor setup with t5 lights, and wondering what are the better ways of growing wheat grass.
I hear once you cut it doesnt grow back, so I'm sure recycling the soil is going to be useful.

if anyone has any knowledge at all it's very much appreciated

[cynthia_h]

I know that there's a big mystique about "wheat grass," but all it is is sprouted wheat "berries," the whole wheat grains themselves. If you've ever sprouted alfalfa seeds or other seeds, you're ready to grow wheat grass.

No soil needed if you follow the sprouting method, but if you're looking to harvest just the green parts, then life will be more difficult. For sprouting, any natural-foods grocery will no doubt have sprouting jars or other implements, and the wheat berries will need to be soaked, then rinsed at least twice a day until the sprouts are the length you need. Then you remove them from the sprouting "jar" or other container and refrigerate them until used.

(I like to use alfalfa sprouts in sandwiches and in egg dishes.)

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[Artemesia]

Just remember, it isn't the wheatgrass that has unusual properties, it's the Tilletia caries that has phytohormones.

[applestar]

Wait that just confused me. So are you saying there's no benefit to drinking wheatgrass juice?

[cynthia_h]

[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tilletia_caries]Tilletia caries[/url] seems to be a plant disease (fungus). How is it beneficial to people? *confused*

Cynthia H.

[Artemesia]

Wheatgrass is low to moderate in vitamins and minerals depending on how you grow it. Any Google search will give you the nutritional breakdown. Not all that unusual. What people do not realize is that sometimes wheatgrass is beneficial. But it is not because of the wheatgrass. Wheatgrass is nothing special. It is the Tilletia caries that grows on the wheatgrass that is special. It contains phytohormones. Any Google search will give you the details.

[applestar]

??? OK, so are "better/healthier" wheatgrass intentionally infected with this fungus? Do you inoculate the seed wheaterries before planting, similar to peas and beans?

@tToke, I hope you don't mind. I'm just intrigued now and discussion IS swinging back to "best way to grow"... Sort of.

I recently bought a manual "wheatgrass" juicer, not so much to juice wheatgrass but to juice extra greens and also wet pulp that comes out of my cheap electric juicer. So this topic about wheatgrass is very interesting to me.

[cynthia_h]

Wheatgrass is low to moderate in vitamins and minerals depending on how you grow it. Any Google search will give you the nutritional breakdown. Not all that unusual. What people do not realize is that sometimes wheatgrass is beneficial. But it is not because of the wheatgrass. Wheatgrass is nothing special. It is the Tilletia caries that grows on the wheatgrass that is special. It contains phytohormones. Any Google search will give you the details.

[boldface added]

This is an interesting way of not responding to the results of my previous Google search. It would also remove the discussion from the forum, since any information I might find wouldn't necessarily find its way back here. Several years of experience at The Helpful Gardener, by many different moderators and at least a couple of different owners, have shown that sending questioners--no matter what their assumed knowledge base may be--away to "the Internet" and a favored search engine generally brings a heretofore productive discussion to a close, which of course is not what we're about.

My first question was: "If Tilletia caries is a plant disease/fungus, how is it beneficial to people?" I had to go look up the term "Tilletia caries" because I didn't understand your first response. (Others may have been similarly confused, which is why I came back and wrote my first post on this thread.)

My second question, which I pose now, is similar: "How does Tilletia caries benefit people?" You've used the term phytohormone. Does this phytohormone (for example) scavenge free radicals? enhance digestion? etc.

I also have a third question, following from applestar's line of thought: "Is there a way for people to grow or select wheat berries to grow which will increase the nutritional benefit of the sprouts/grass from those berries? If yes, please describe how to do it; if no, please describe why it's not possible."

Thank you!

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[Artemesia]

Tilletia caries is a plant pathogen that infects wheat causing the disease bunt.
Many times organic wheat will naturally be infected with the spore
but have no symptoms of the disease called bunt
because the organic plant is usually very healthy and naturally resistant.
Conventional wheat is grown with so much fungicide that it usually does not carry the spore.

Horses are bigger and stronger in Kentucky because the humidity and heat
are ideal for natural occurance of the fungus.
Theoretically, people could benefit in the same way.
But there are some inherent risks.
We do not know what the side effects may be of the phytohormones in Tilletia caries.
It could be like the cell proliferant in Comfrey in that in actually encourages cancer cells
even more than it encourages healthy cells.
And horses only live about 17 years so they may not be the best example.

I am sharing this knowledge because people should understand
that there are risks with almost every crop and preparation method.
Also, there are crops that are much more nutritious without as much risk;
collards, kale, turnips, chicory, okra, etc.

I only recommended that people double check everything I say
because sometimes people reject what I say out of hand.
I also do not want people to just trust what I say.
And someone might have access to new knowledge which I have not seen yet.
Knowledge is constantly expanding.

Juicing is good if the fiber is indigestable.
Blending is good to a point in that it can help break down cell walls and release nutrients.
But it is not so good if it is used so much that we do not chew our food enough.
Stressing our teeth makes them stronger.
Bone growth responds to stress.

[cynthia_h]

Thank you very much. I appreciate all the work it took to type out your message (believe me; I know).

What you say makes sense, and I'm pleased/relieved that I eat bunches of kale--I eat kale at least twice, sometimes three times, a week during the cool season b/c that's when it grows like crazy in my raised beds.

Just as well, b/c collards and okra never make it to my table.... the product of too many over-cooked meals of same when I was a kid at my father's sister's house in rural Florida. "Never again," I promised myself.

Turnips have a starring role in many of my winter soups and stews.

And I sprout a number of different seeds/"berries."

But wheat grass has many proponents; probably b/c it can be so concentrated and "no cooking needed," is my guess.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[Artemesia]

I understand why wheat grass is so popular. I have drunk a ton of it myself and had some powerful experiences. But the more educated and experienced I became the more suspicious I was. Once I realized what was happening I stopped because it seems risky. But I wish Tilletia caries was studied more thoroughly so we could know if it is safe or not. Nothing would please me more than to find out it is safe.