How to grow speedy windowsill crops

• For speedy 'cut-and-come-again' salad leaves, fill a window-box with good quality Seed and Cutting compost, firming gently for a level sowing surface. If you don't have a window box, use a plant pot or recycled plastic container instead, making sure it has drainage holes in the botom. Water the compost gently until moist.
• Sprinkle your speedy seeds thinly and evenly across the surface of the compost. Don't worry if you accudently sow too many, you will be able to thin them out as they grow. Lightly cover with a fine layer of compost and pop a clear plastic lid or polythene bag over the top to keep in the heat and moisture. Stand on a bright windowsill, removing the cover once seedlings start to grow to keep them aired.
• Keep the compost moist as your seeds grow until they are big enough to pick. In summer this can be as little as four weeks from sowing. Pick baby salad leaves as you need them, a few from each plant.
• To grow nutritious and tasty sprouting seeds in a just a few days, soak a couple of tablespoons of your choice of seeds overnight in a glass jar before draining in a fine sieve. Rinse well with clean water then put them back in the jar to start sprouting.

• Stand your jar on any warm, light windowsill away from bright sunlight. Keep an eye on them to make sure they don't dry out, continuing to drain and rinse at least twice daily with fresh clean water.
• Sprouting shoots are ready to eat in five to ten days when they have grown to around 1 inch/2cm in length. Give them a final rinse befgore adding to your salad bowl.

Top Tip: Store any extra picked leaves and sprouted shoots in a covered bowl in the fridge and use within a few days.