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A troll in Burnaby: Seedlings grow into a second chance with sprouting, perfect for students who want to save money and get healthy!

By Cody Klyne

he cautionary tale that I’m about to T= you hits on many of the same

clichéd notes as the 1994 animated movie, A Troll in Central Park, that inspired it: passionate young love, bitter betrayal, and finally (if years later in this case) a happy ending.

In grade three, at the age of eight, I was destined to be a gardener.

For those of you who haven’t seen A Troll in Central Park, allow me to summarize what is, looking back, otherwise a very average affair: magical troll saves the day with his green thumb. Anyway, if that didn’t sell you on it, regardless of the film’s quality, Stanley— which, of course, is the troll’s name— inspired me to pick up a trowel, spade, or spoon and get to digging. Armed with what Ill refer to as my “junior grower’s kit” I had everything I needed to start my garden. With my first harvest of tomatoes and cucumbers sown and potted, over the course of weeks of love and nourishment in the form of tap water and moody looks of desire from the kitchen window, I was on track to bank a bounty of greenery.

To avoid coming across as immature or overeager, I was going on nine after all, I decided to wait one more night to let them “finish up.” Then the raccoons came.

It was a complete and utter massacre; snapped stems and half eaten tomatoes littered our porch and marked the furry intruder’s path of destruction. The cucumbers had all but vanished entirely while the only remaining evidence of their existence, a turned over pot of soil, was left sitting mockingly off in the corner, as if it was ashamed. While the tears did eventually stop, the damage was done and, to this day, I have yet to plunge my hands into the ground with the goal of creating anything more than a hole. It’s been 15 years, get over it, right? What snapped in my brain to bring this on so late in the game? The answer: sprouting.

Having moved out on my own with a friend of mine last September, I’ve spent hours brainstorming ideas to evolve our modest second story two bedroom out of the “budget party apartment “ gutter and into something of a “real home.” That’s when a close friend of mine, Jarrad Lajeunesse, mentioned sprouting; initially pitched to me as a solid addition to my already semi-health-conscious diet, Lajeunesse delivered the final blow with the following statement: “if you’re someone who doesn’t like to spend a lot of money (like me) then you'll love sprouting.” Healthy AND cheap? Count me in: So, let’s get down to the basics.

Simply put, sprouting is the preferred term for the act of germinating seeds for the purpose of cooking or for raw consumption. As you might expect, these sprouts are highly nutritious and contain a number of unique enzymes, minerals, and vitamins (ie: proteins, calcium, iron, zinc, vitamins a, b,c, e, etc.) Take for example the sprouts of the mung bean, one of the most common and widely used of the bunch. While your local grocery store variety are generally long, thin,

white, and generally watery nothings, their

home-grown counterparts can range from light to dark brown in colour and are a good source of protein, iron, potassium, and vitamins a, c, and e. Simply put, by sprouting at home, you’ll be growing

the best on the market. So, with that in mind, how does one join the ranks of the sprouting elite?

First, pick your seed of choice. While the obvious few are solid selections in their own right, like our aforementioned friend the mung bean, many vegetables, nuts, cereals, and beans make for great sprouting candidates (Note: be sure to do your research! Some sprouts contain toxins that make them crummy for sprouting).Next, rinse your seeds and soak them to moisten them to life (soaking time can vary greatly, so again, do your research!) After being placed into an appropriate receptacle—a glass or plastic jar or container with holes made to allow for drainage and ventilation to occur— sprouting seeds need to be kept in a room temperature environment and rinsed roughly two times daily. If done correctly (yes, mistakes can be made but, really, a monkey with sink-access could do this) in a matter of days you’ll be eating fresh, crispy, and healthy sprouts of your own!

Most grains, seeds, and beans need to

be soaked for 8 - 12 hours in water.

After that they simply require a

rinsing every 8 -12 hours

¢ — Try to buy an organic product since there will not be any heat to kill any of the pesticides

*. Before soaking, rinse whatever you want to sprout thoroughly to make sure they are clean

¢ Inspect and remove any sticks or broken seeds

¢ — After your food has sprouted, eat

sooner than later. A fresh sprout will

have the most nutrients

Saturday, May 14" pa OleT Ma remo) eli ore Them Mel

2

rd Ave #8 noDdv

Calling all scrapbookers! This is a great opportunity to socialize with friends, get projects done, and support a fantastic cause.

Fully stocked on-site store available, provided by For Keeps Sake Scrapbooking. Products for sale and demonstrations by consultants throughout the day. Bring along 2-3 favourite photos on a memory stick, and the Creative Memories representative will help you create a personalized page on the new Creative Memories Storybook Creator 3.0 Software for digital scrapbooking.

Fantastic silent auction

Price of entry includes a pizza dinner, door prizes, goody bags, reserved seating and spot contests. Please bring a dish for the potluck lunch and snacks.

For more information call Cindy at 604-444-1118 or email Lucille at lgwright@telus.net

THE RIDE TO CON All proceeds from this

event go to the BC Cancer Foundation

BENEPITING

BC Cancer Foundation

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