Gardening on Cloud 9 » Wheatgrass

Catgrass – One Cat’s Rubbish is Another Cat’s Treasure

Sandy — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:30:35 +0000

One cat’s rubbish is another cat’s treasure. After learning how easy it is to grow wheatgrass, a few of my cat loving friends decided to grow some wheatgrass for their cats. While all of my friends have successfully grown some green and healthy wheatgrass, not everyone of their cats like what their owners have prepared for them.

My friend, Man, told me that after her cat, Mao Chu, sniffed around and examined the wheatgrass for a while, it just left the pot of grass behind without giving it another look.

Janet’s kitties love their snacks. Janet said she doesn’t think she can ever grow a second batch of wheatgrass since her cats just keep eating whatever they find growing out from the soil…

Instead of letting her cat eat out from the pot, Christina feeds her cat on a plate separately.

How to Prevent Mold When Growing Grasses in Containers

Sandy — Sun, 31 May 2009 00:47:34 +0000

Because of the mold that I have found on my wheatgrass, I have done some research on this subject, and have learned that mold is actually quite a common problem when growing wheatgrass. And while mold doesn’t look very appetizing, it isn’t harmful to our health. As long as we cut the wheatgrass way above the mold that is grown on the soil, and rinse the grass, it is safe to juice them or give them to our pets as snacks (a large number of young grass species, including wheatgrass, can be fed to pet, check Cat Grass or Wheatgrass? for more details).

While mold is a common problem when growing grass in container, it is preventable. Here are several ways to prevent mold from growing on grass.

Create air circulation

This is important especially when the temperature and humidity is high. Mold tends to grow best when it is hot and humid (above 80 degree F, 25 degree C). If you cannot grow your grass outdoor, use a fan to increase air circulation. I am glad that I have put my bowl of wheatgrass in the balcony once I have found mold on the grass. The mold problem has eased after a while. Even though it has been humid and rainy in these few days, the strong gusts of wind have provided very good air circulation.

Use only clean growing container and sterile soil
Plant less densely

Lay out the seeds in the tray densely, but only in one layer, so to give enough breathing space for each sprout and improve air circulation. I think I may have planted my wheatgrass a bit too densely.

Cat Grass Day 21 – Mold Problem Solved

Sandy — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:46:12 +0000

Apparently, moving my bowl of catgrass out to the balcony is the right decision to make. After a week of time, the mold near the root of the wheatgrass has more or less gone! Despite of the improved air circulation, the damp and rainy weather in the past week had made me wondered whether the high humidity would worsen the mold problem. Hence, I had not watered the grass since Day 14. And when I checked the wheatgrass again a week later, I was very happy to find that the mold was gone. Even though it has been humid and rainy in these few days, the strong gusts of wind have provided very good air circulation

Cat Grass Day 14 – Mold on My Cat Grass

Sandy — Sun, 24 May 2009 03:01:16 +0000

Everything of my cat grass was looking good until I’d found some mold on the cat grass on Day 14 I don’t know what has caused the mold. But before I find out how to deal with this mold problem, I’ve just moved my bowl of cat grass to the balcony. Hopefully, better air circulation will ease the problem a bit.

There was no mold on Day 8.

My cat grass has grown as tall as the ruler now, and I probably won’t let it grow any taller than this.

After a trim, my cat grass is looking good again (but only that it has mold…)

Cat Grass Day 6 – Oops! Maybe My Container is Too Small…

Sandy — Sat, 16 May 2009 00:44:08 +0000

As the shop owner said, cat grass is really easy to grow! And the grasses grow very fast too, growing about an inch every day! I think cat grass will make a good present for my friend who keeps telling me how much she loves plant yet always kills whatever she tries to grow

Oops! Maybe this Japanese rice bowl is too small for the cat grasses huh…

Cat Grass Day 3 – I See Some Greens!

Sandy — Tue, 12 May 2009 01:27:32 +0000

Last morning, I found some cat grass seeds had started germinating.

And in this morning, I can finally see some greens! Since the seedlings keep stretching and bending themselves in search of light, I have kept rotating my cat grass from time to time in order to keep them growing straight.

Cat Grass Day 1 – It Sounds Too Good to Be True!

Sandy — Sun, 10 May 2009 07:32:32 +0000

I have heard of cat grass in a gardening forum before. Yet, since I have no cat at home, I have never given much thought about growing it, but only until recently, when I am planning to make a tabletop container garden for a friend who is a cat lover.

So, a few days ago, I went to the flower market hoping to find some cat grass. And with my luck, I found a store that sold cat grass seeds.

The shop owner told me that it is very easy to grow cat grass. All one has to do is cover the soil mix with cat grass seeds, and water them. There is no need to soak the seeds in advance. And with minimal sun exposure, the grass will start growing and thrive within days. In fact, according to the shop owner, the pot of cat grass in the shop (as seen in the photo above) had just been seeded 4 days ago.

I was a bit skeptical. It’s just too good to be true! But I gave it a try anyways, and did exactly as what I was told. So, let’s see how it will turn out to be. And as for the pot, I am using my new Japanese rice bowl which I have just drilled a drainage hole especially for my cat grass. I love the kitty on the bowl. It’s just so cute!