27 July 2015

Lentil harvest (part 2)

The pillowcase-and-baseball-bat threshing technique worked well to release the lentils from their pods. Then I removed the stems of the plants and tipped the remaining material from one plastic container to another, in a light breeze, to winnow out the last bits of straw and seed-pods.


From about 20 lentil plants, I recovered about half a cup of lentils (80g). Enough for one meal, perhaps, which perhaps doesn't sound too impressive. There are around 160 lentils in 5g, which gives a total yield of around 2,650 lentils in my batch.  I probably only sowed about 20 lentils to begin with, so that's a return of 13,150% on my initial investment, which is nothing to sniff at.



I'll keep a lot of these seeds for next year and grow a bigger patch outside, if I can devise a way of protecting the seedlings from rabbits!

5 comments:

Beth @ PlantPostings said...

Nasty rabbits! That is always the biggest challenge for me, too. I admire your harvesting techniques with the lentils. They're such a good source of protein. The entire process must be a fun and rewarding experience.

Daphne Gould said...

Protecting the crops from the critters is a never ending task. Your lentils look great.

Daisy said...

Oh, the rabbits! I've had some success spreading red pepper flakes around the plants, but I have to refresh after every rain or major watering.

Margaret said...

How wonderful (except for the rabbits, that is). My son isn't much into baseball anymore, but now I know not to get rid of the bat!

Dave @ HappyAcres said...

What a great return on your lentil investment! I know rabbits love to eat bush beans and peas, so I'm not surprised they like the lentils.