Organic Bull's Blood Beet Seeds for Growing Microgreens

The two varieties belong to the same general botanical species (Beta vulgaris), but to two different subspecies. Bull's Blood is a true beetroot (var. vulgaris), normally grown for its fleshy root. Ruby Red Chard, on the other hand, is a chard (var. cicla), usually grown for its leaves and coloured stalks. As microgreens, the visual difference is clear: with Ruby Red, only the stems are red and the cotyledons stay green. With Bull's Blood, the whole shoot is coloured - stems and leaves - in much more intense burgundy shades. In terms of taste, Bull's Blood has a more pronounced, more distinctive beetroot flavour.

It is an heirloom variety selected at the end of the 19th century by the nurseryman W. Atlee Burpee, founder of the famous American seed company of the same name (of British origin). The evocative name "Bull's Blood" refers to the colour intensity of its foliage. It is one of the oldest beetroot varieties still grown today, precisely because its concentration of red pigments makes it a must-have. Our seeds come from Geo Bavicchi (Perugia, Italy), who have been selecting this variety for the European market for decades.

Sprouted seeds are harvested very early (2 to 5 days), at the radicle stage, and are grown in a jar or sprouter with daily rinsing. Microgreens go further: they are harvested at the cotyledon stage (the first embryonic leaves), between 10 and 14 days for Bull's Blood, and only the aerial part is eaten, cut with scissors. They are grown on a light substrate - in our case, 100% natural ceramic granules. And with Bull's Blood, you get as a bonus that deep burgundy colour which the sprouted seed does not reveal.

Allow around 8 to 9 g of seeds for a standard tray of the GEO Smart Greens sprouter. The 15 g sachet therefore gives you 1 crop, and the 200 g format around 22 to 25 crops - enough to have fresh Bull's Blood microgreens continuously for more than five months.

In concrete terms, allow 10 to 14 days between sowing and harvest. Bull's Blood is one of the medium-cycle microgreens - a little slower than mustard or radish (which are harvested in 6 to 8 days), but the wait is worth it for that burgundy intensity which develops and deepens day by day. Harvest when the shoots reach 5 to 7 cm.

It is strongly recommended. Like chard (same botanical family), beetroot seeds are in fact seed clusters - irregular, particularly hard clusters that contain several embryos. Soaking for 4 to 6 hours in clean water at room temperature before sowing softens the coat and significantly speeds up germination. For Bull's Blood, this soaking really makes a difference - without it, germination can be slow and uneven.

The intense burgundy colour comes from betalains, plant pigments characteristic of the Amaranthaceae family. Bull's Blood has been selected for more than a century precisely for its exceptional concentration of betalains, which makes it one of the most colourful varieties in existence. In concrete terms, the more the shoot develops and receives light, the more the colour intensifies - and the whole shoot (stems and leaves) takes on the colour, not just the stems as with chard.

For microgreens, it is not ideal. Easygreen sprouters are perfect for classic sprouted seeds (alfalfa, broccoli, lentils, fenugreek...) which are grown by misting or by siphon effect, without a substrate. Microgreens, on the other hand, need to be grown on a substrate with bottom irrigation. That is precisely the purpose of the GEO Smart Greens sprouter, designed for this process.

Yes, that is one of its big advantages. After harvesting, you remove the roots, rinse the granules in clean water, and you can start a new crop. The porous structure of the ceramic keeps its absorption capacity over the cycles - up to 5 reuses recommended by Bavicchi. It is honestly more ecological than a single-use peat or coir type substrate.

Ideally, cut them just before serving - that way you enjoy all their freshness and their vivid burgundy colour. If you need to store them, put them in the fridge in an airtight box between two sheets of kitchen paper. They keep for 3 to 4 days, but their flavour and colour are at their best in the first 24 hours.

A few concrete ideas we use at home with Aurélie: on an avocado toast (made with sourdough bread or seed crackers) - the avocado green / burgundy shoot contrast is spectacular; on a raw beetroot carpaccio (a play of intensities, it is superb); in a colourful raw salad with grated carrot, red cabbage and young shoots; to finish a raw courgette soup or a cucumber gazpacho - the burgundy stands out intensely against the green; on a finely chopped vegetable tartare; in a fresh seaweed salad such as rehydrated wakame or dulse - the burgundy/green-brown contrast is striking; as a garnish on a home-made seaweed hummus; in a cold-pressed green juice which will naturally turn pink; or in a deep-coloured raw bowl. Always add at the end of preparation, raw, to preserve the aromas and the brightness of the colour.