Year: 2025

Reignite Your Love for Fresh Food: Grow Microgreens the Easy Way with Tray2Grow

If you’re looking to fall back in love with food—or just want to add a powerful punch of flavor and nutrition to your meals—microgreens are the way to go. These young seedlings of herbs and veggies are small in size but huge in taste, color, and health benefits. They’re fast-growing, easy to cultivate, and absolutely packed with flavor.

With just a little space, light, and some seeds, you can grow enough microgreens at home to top your salads, sandwiches, and snacks. But if you’re curious about scaling up, experimenting with different varieties, or just want more reliable results without daily watering—AutoPot’s Tray2Grow system makes it all easier and more efficient.

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Why Use a Tray2Grow for Microgreens?

The Tray2Grow System is a fully automated, gravity-fed watering system that takes the guesswork—and the daily hassle—out of growing. It doesn’t need electricity or running water. Instead, it uses the power of gravity and a smart valve (the AQUAvalve5) to deliver just the right amount of water, exactly when your plants need it. That means no overwatering, no underwatering, and no stressing.

For microgreens, that level of control leads to faster germination, healthier growth, and more consistent harvests—whether you’re just growing a few trays in your kitchen or setting up a mini-farm in your garage.

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Getting Started: What You’ll Need

1. Set Up Your Tray2Grow System

Choose the capillary matting setup for growing microgreens. AutoPot offers two sizes of microgreen trays:

• Large trays for bulk harvests
• Mini trays if you’re growing to order or testing different varieties (available soon!)

Each Tray2Grow platform holds up to two large trays or eight minis. These trays are specially designed with precision perforations that allow just the right amount of water to wick up through the media, thanks to the capillary mat underneath.

2. Choose Your Growing Medium

Microgreens can grow in a variety of media. Some top choices include:

• Coco coir – Holds moisture well, promotes strong root development, and supports beneficial microbes.
• Unbleached paper towel or hemp mats – Inexpensive, compostable, and easy to use.
• Coco mats or grow felt – Commercial options that provide great uniformity and cleanliness.

We’ve found that high-quality coco coir delivers some of the most vigorous, flavorful harvests.

3. Prep Your Seeds

Larger seeds like peas or sunflower may benefit from a short soak (4–8 hours) before sowing. Smaller seeds like basil, radish, or broccoli can be sown dry.

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Sowing Your Microgreens

Here’s how to load your trays:

1. Fill each tray with your chosen grow media
2. Moisten the media with clean water
3. Evenly distribute your seeds across the surface
4. For larger seeds, gently press them into the media; smaller seeds can rest on top
5. Optional: Use a dibber or small tool to lightly tamp the seeds for better contact

Once prepped, place your trays directly on the root control sheet in the Tray2Grow system.

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How the Watering Works

This is where Tray2Grow shines. The system uses capillary action to draw moisture up from the reservoir into the grow media. The AQUAvalve5 only releases water when the media dries out slightly, ensuring your microgreens get exactly what they need—no more, no less.

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You can run either mineral or organic nutrients in your reservoir for added flavor and growth. Just make sure to keep your solution mild—microgreens don’t need strong feeding.

Light and Germination

To help your seeds sprout properly:

• Keep them in the dark until they germinate.
• Use Microgreens Training Trays aka the ‘Microgreens Trays without holes’ or any breathable blackout cover to block light while maintaining airflow.

After a few days (depending on the variety), you’ll see sprouts. At this point, it’s time to introduce light—preferably from a T5 or LED grow light, or a bright windowsill if you’re growing indoors.

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Strength Training for Stronger Greens

One cool trick: place a Microgreens Training Tray on top of the sprouts after germination. This adds a bit of resistance as they grow—kind of like weightlifting for plants. The result? Thicker stems, stronger structure, and better post-harvest shelf life.

When your greens start to lift the tray, remove it and let them green up in full light.

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Harvest Time!

Most microgreens are ready to harvest 7–14 days after sowing. They should be:

• About 2–4 inches tall
• Showing 1–2 “true leaves”
• Bright, vibrant, and aromatic

Use scissors or a sharp knife to snip just above the media. You don’t need to harvest everything at once—microgreens can stay fresh in the tray for a few extra days or be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week.

Pro tip: Harvest gently to avoid disturbing neighboring roots if you plan on staggered cuts.

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Want More Than Just Microgreens?

One of the biggest perks of Tray2Grow is its versatility. With the same base system, you can easily switch between:

• Microgreens
• Seed trays
• Fabric pots
• Grow bags
• Planters

Whether you’re growing leafy greens, strawberries, tomatoes, or radishes—Tray2Grow adapts to it all.

And because it runs without power or plumbing, it’s perfect for off-grid setups, patios, greenhouses, or even a sunny kitchen corner.

If you just want to utilize the Tray2Grow System to grow microgreens, check out the Tray2Grow Slim Kit – Microgreens Edition.

If you want the power of five ways to grow, check out the Tray2Grow Standard Kit and the various accessories.

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Final Thoughts

If you’re serious about microgreens—or just want to grow more with less effort—Tray2Grow is a total game-changer. It’s efficient, flexible, and perfect for home growers who want pro-level results without babysitting their plants.

Check out the full Tray2Grow lineup, nutrient options, and accessories at AutoPot USA, and tag us on Instagram using #GrowWithAutoPot—we’d love to see what you’re growing.

TLDR:

Set Up the System:

• Lay capillary matting and root control sheet in the Tray2Grow. Check out this Tray2Grow Setup Video.

Sow Your Seeds:

• Fill trays with your chosen grow media (e.g., coco coir or grow mat), dampen it, and evenly spread your seeds.
• Press in larger seeds; leave small seeds on the surface.

Add Weight + Block Light:

• Place the Tray2Grow microgreens tray without holes directly on top of the sown trays. Add a small weight (like a book or brick) to apply light pressure.
• This creates encourages strong root anchoring as the seeds sprout.

Germination in the Dark:

• Leave the trays in the dark for 2–4 days until the seeds sprout and begin pushing against the top tray.
• Once the seeds sprout, flip the Tray2Grow microgreens tray without holes to create a ‘blackout dome’ to allow the microgreens to get some height to them.

Introduce Light:

• Once germinated (a few inches tall), remove the top tray and move the system under a grow light or near a bright window.

Turn on Tray2Grow:

• Connect your reservoir and tubing, then insert the AQUAvalve5.
• Turn on the reservoir and fill the Tray2Grow!
• The system will now automatically wick water and nutrients up to the plants as needed—no power or daily watering required.

At AutoPot, we’ve always aimed to create watering systems that are as versatile as they are innovative, designed to work in all kinds of growing setups. Traditionally, irrigation systems are seen as tools for large, high-maintenance, demanding plants, which is why we’ve been a go-to for giant vegetable growers and professional horticulturists across the spectrum for over two decades. But to be truly useful, a watering system needs to do more—like providing smart, low-maintenance solutions for seedlings and young plants, too.

Above: We successfully raise young plants aplenty in our R&D rooms every year using technology based on that found in our larger systems

Tray2Grow is AutoPot’s most versatile 5-in-1 watering system, designed for effortless, automated irrigation. It works with seed trays, pots, planter beds, wicking spikes and microgreens trays, making it adaptable for various growing methods. For young plants, Tray2Grow simplifies seedling care by allowing growers to place small seedlings directly onto the tray for automated bottom watering. Using the trusted AQUAvalve5, it delivers water only when plants need it, ensuring seedlings receive consistent hydration without over- or under-watering. This gentle approach promotes strong root development and reduces transplant shock, making it an ideal low-maintenance solution for starting young plants with minimal effort and maximum efficiency.

For those who want an ultra low-tech means of watering young plants, CocoMat is a superb way to go. This coco coir and natural latex matting is laid into any size garden tray with a root control sheet on top. Pots or trays of plants or seedlings are placed atop the root control sheet. With your tray filled, CocoMat then effectively acts as a wick, allowing the plants to draw up water at exactly their desired rate. There’s nothing to fear in terms of plants being starved or overwhelmed, they’ll do exactly as they please and develop more healthily and more fully for it. The matting is easily cut to size and can water for up to 10 days if manually filling the tray. These are great for turning any size smaller tray into a bottom feeding system in a pinch for a quick vacation. To take it one step further, pair a CocoMat with an easy2go kit + AQUAvalve to create an ultra-low-maintenance automated system with an attached reservoir.

The easy2GO Kit is a simple, inexpensive device that, when used to propagate, sits in any flat-bottomed garden tray along with your pot- or tray-laden CocoMat. At the heart of easy2GO is the AQUAvalve; a power-free, self-regulating double float valve. Atop the AQUAvalve (light blue in the above picture) is the AQUAvalve Cover, which is a weighted cover to hold the AQUAvalve in place on the tray. The AQUAvalve is attached to a reservoir and opens to provide a supply of water and/or nutrient solution into the tray and only once the CocoMat has wicked all that water/nutrient solution up to the plants, will the AQUAvalve reopen to admit a fresh fill. Watch a quick video on AQUAvalve mechanics here. Crucially for young plants this means the potential for over- or under-watering is virtually eliminated.

Beyond the propagation stage we move into kits that quickly, inexpensively adapt our pot-and-tray modules for use with growth-stage plants. Prime amongst these kits is PotDivider. This handy insert allows you to segregate your pot into four sections, ideal for starting off smaller plants. Once planted up, your ‘PotDivider’ pot sits in a module tray that is connected via pipework to a reservoir. We have a 2.2 gallon PotDivider and 3.9 gallon PotDivider.

To bring the plants on a little further we offer robust yet inexpensive propagation lids that fit the pots perfectly. Designed to be fitted during the crucial early weeks, the lids help to generate the humidity that young plants crave. Sated by the humidity that the lids confer, your plants can quickly take hold, fill out, and enjoy for further vigorous growth. We offer a propagation lid compatible with our 2.2 gallon and 3.9 gallon pot and an XL propagation lid compatible with our 6.6 gallon pot.

Without exception these are inexpensive and adaptable ways to get more from your young plants. So, as thoughts turn to next season why not take a gander and consider what they might do for your young ones?