Controlled growth of mung bean sprouts
AssigneePhytogen
InventorJames F. Bonner
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Mung bean sprouts of increased diameter are grown in an atmosphere containing oxygen and from about 0.5 to about 3 ppmv of a plant-growth regulator of ethylene, acetylene or mixtures thereof, and under a spray of an aqueous solution containing from about 0.1 to about 5 ppm weight-to-volume of a plant-growth hormone, which is 2,4-D, an auxin, or mixtures thereof.
Claims18
A process for growing of mung bean sprouts of increased diameter which comprises exposing sprouted mung beans in the absence of light to a spray of aqueous plant-growth hormone solution comprising a plant-growth hormone selected from the group consisting of an auxin, a biological analogue thereof, and mixtures thereof, and present in a concentration of from about 0.1 to about 5 ppm by weight to volume of said aqueous solution and to a plant-growth regulator atmosphere comprising oxygen and from about 0.5 to about 3 ppm by volume of a plant-growth regulator selected from the group consisting of ethylene, acetylene and mixtures thereof for at least a portion of a selected period of mung bean sprout growth.
A process for growing mung bean sprouts of increased diameter which comprises:
- (a) exposing during a first period of mung bean sprout growth, in the absence of light and under aseptic conditions, germinated mung beans to an intermittent spray of a deionized aqueous plant-growth solution comprising from about 0.1 to about 5 ppm weight-to-volume of 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid and a surfactant present in a concentration sufficient to disperse the 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid in said aqueous plant-growth hormone solution and a plant-growth regulator atmosphere comprising oxygen, carbon dioxide and from about 0.5 to about 5 ppm by volume ethylene, said first period of mung bean sprout growth being up to about 120 hours;
- (b) supplanting said spray of aqueous plant-growth hormone solution with a spray of deionized water and exposing growing mung bean sprouts, in the absence of light, to said intermittent spray of water and air for a period of up to about 24 hours;
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- (c) harvesting the mung bean sprouts.
A process for growing bean sprouts of increased diameter which comprises:
- (a) submersing, in the absence of light and under aseptic conditions, mung beans in deionized water containing a surfactant for a period of time of up to about 10 hours to initiate growth of sprouts;
- (b) draining the water from the sprouted mung beans;
- (c) introducing to said mung bean sprouts a plant-growth regulator atmosphere comprising oxygen, carbon dioxide and from about 0.5 to about 3 ppm by volume of a plant-growth regulator selected from the group consisting of ethylene, acetylene and mixtures thereof and while maintaining said atmosphere,:
- (i) intermittently exposing said sprouts to deionized water for a first period of at least about 24 hours;
- (ii) intermittently exposing said sprouts to a spray of an aqueous plant-growth hormone solution comprising deionized water, from about 0.1 to about 5 ppm of a plant-growth hormone selected from the group consisting of an auxin, a biological analogue thereof, and mixtures thereof, and a surfactant present in a concentration sufficient to disperse said plant-growth hormone in said aqueous solution for a second period beginning at about the 24th hour of sprout growth and extending to about the 72nd hour of sprout growth;
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- (d) replacing the spray of plant-growth hormone with an intermittent spray of deionized water for a final period of growth of at least about 24 hours.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.