Do you know chickpea seeds? If you have never tried them before, I highly recommend them because they are nutritious and tasty. Sometimes they can be purchased at certain grocery stores. They are in small cans or in the form of dry grains.
Growing chickpeas
I would recommend growing chickpeas in our climate only on a small scale as a curiosity or a gardening experiment. It is definitely a thermophilic plant and the harvest will be rather small. The shrubs grown under covers or in a tunnel will give a more abundant harvest. Chickpeas are very similar in many ways to beans, but are unlikely to replace them as they like warmer temperatures.Nevertheless, I recommend that you try both growing chickpeas (that's what some people call it) and its nutty flavor.
Sowing chickpeas
Chickpeas can be sown straight into the ground at the beginning of May. I put 3 seeds in each of the 6 cm deep wells. Then, after the seedlings have germinated, I leave only the finest specimens. Chickpeas form bushes (30-50 cm tall) with stiff stems. It blooms pink or white, and there are one or two pea-like seeds in the pods. They ripen in August, although it's best to pick them when the pods turn brown.
Cultivation care
Chickpeas are drought tolerant, but may need watering as they bloom and form pods. I recommend that you wear gloves when cleaning the shrubs or harvesting, as the entire plant is covered with fine hairs containing oxalic acid, which irritates the skin.
He alth and culinary benefits
Chickpeas are rich in protein, phosphorus, potassium, iron, fiber and vitamin B. Thanks to this, it can successfully replace meat in the diet. The ground chickpea seeds are also used to make baking flour. I often cook seeds (45 min) with the addition of a bay leaf. Before that, they need to be soaked in water for about 12 hours. Using ground, cooked grains mixed with olive oil, lemon juice, crushed garlic, you can prepare a nutritious vegetarian pate for spreading on bread.
Zofia Klimas
Chickpeas for sprouts
We can also prepare tasty sprouts from chickpeas. You should only buy seeds specially designed for this, e.g. in a he alth food store. Place the plate in a warm, bright place with wet lignin, sprinkle the seeds and sprinkle with water 2-3 times a day.
