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What to buy to grow sprouts in the UK

Updated: October 2026

You search for sprouts expecting one purchase, then find glass jars, mung beans and packets meant for Brussels sprouts at Christmas. The first decision is which crop you mean. Shoots within days need edible sprouting seed and a draining jar. Winter buttons need Brussels sprout seed, soil and months outdoors. The [sprouts comparison](/hub/seeds-and-plants/sprouts) sets the seven amazon.co.uk listings side by side, read on 15 October 2026. This page is what to buy to grow sprouts in the UK before you pick a listing, including parts a typical kit does not supply. We did not grow a crop.

You search for sprouts expecting one purchase, then find glass jars, mung beans and packets meant for Brussels sprouts at Christmas. The first decision is which crop you mean.

Our top picks

Hisredsun Hisredsun 2-jar sprouting kit

Best overall

Hisredsun Hisredsun 2-jar sprouting kit
8.8/10about £14.49
View offer
Meldon Seeds Meldon Evesham Special Brussels sprout seeds

Rank 2

Meldon Seeds Meldon Evesham Special Brussels sprout seeds
8.5/10about £2.95
View offer
Unwins Unwins sprouting mung bean seeds

Rank 3

Unwins Unwins sprouting mung bean seeds
6.6/10about £1.48
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Two crops share the word sprouts
  2. 2.A sprouting jar kit is hardware, not a complete crop
  3. 3.Sprouting seed is a second purchase
  4. 4.Brussels sprout seed needs garden space and an early plan
  5. 5.What to skip

Two crops share the word sprouts

Jar sprouts are newly germinated seeds, eaten while shoots and roots are still small. Mung bean, daikon, broccoli and alfalfa are familiar examples. They grow indoors without soil: soak, rinse and leave the jar tilted so water drains. Brussels sprouts are a brassica sown in spring and transplanted into firm ground, with about 60 cm per plant. Buttons are usually picked from autumn into winter, often after frost. Evesham Special at about £2.95 cannot replace a sprouting jar, and a 1000 ml jar cannot grow Brussels buttons. Tinned bean sprouts are cooked food, not seed. The three rows above are different jobs, not one ranking.

A sprouting jar kit is hardware, not a complete crop

A useful setup has food-safe glass, a mesh lid, an angled stand and a drip tray. The three kits each advertise two 1000 ml jars, from about £14.49 for Hisredsun to about £16.99 for Huamai Trade, with sleeved IYWY at about £15.88. None lists seed. Hisredsun includes shading cloths. IYWY lists removable blackout sleeves. Darkness does not replace drainage. A Kilner set sold elsewhere includes a booklet. Many Hisredsun reviewers say no instructions arrived, and two Huamai reviewers report the same. The best sprouting jar kit page stays with that hardware.
Hisredsun Hisredsun 2-jar sprouting kit

Testsieger

Hisredsun Hisredsun 2-jar sprouting kit
8.8/10about £14.49
View offer

Sprouting seed is a second purchase

Choose seed sold for edible sprouting. Garden seed can be treated, and bird seed is not packed for eating the shoots. Alys Fowler, in The Guardian on 4 April 2020, says start with edible seed rather than treated garden seed. The packet should say sprouting or food use, and it should arrive sealed. Unwins is 15 g of sprouting mung bean seed at about £1.48, with foliage and full-sun lines on the listing, so check what arrives. SkySprouts daikon is about £9.99: the title and item weight say 200 g, and another field says 500 g. Then follow the jar sprouting method.

Brussels sprout seed needs garden space and an early plan

Meldon lists about 450 Evesham Special seeds, sow February to May, at about £2.95. RHS indoor sowing is generally February to April, so the packet sits on the spring calendar. Franchi lists about 1,800 seeds and says May to August for Christmas, at about £4.29. That is later than mainstream UK guidance, and the listing names no cultivar. Treat it as a conflict on the delivered packet, not a calendar to average with the RHS. Ten plants at 60 cm need a sizeable bed. For pots, the RHS suggests one compact plant in a container at least 30 cm wide. Neither packet is a mesh lid.

What to skip

Skip jar seed described only for garden planting, and reject an unsealed packet. A stainless claim has not stopped rust complaints. A blackout sleeve is optional. Rinsing and full drainage are not. For Brussels sprouts, skip a sow date you cannot match to the named variety. Seed count rarely decides the buy, because space limits mature plants. For a jar, decide food safety before you treat a home batch like a ready-to-eat pack, especially if you cook for somebody who is pregnant, very young, older or immunocompromised.

Common questions

Do I need a special jar to grow sprouts?
No, but you do need a container that can be rinsed and drained safely. A purpose-made mesh lid and angled stand make repeated drainage easier than improvising with cloth. If you already own compatible wide-mouth jars, buying lids and a stand separately may avoid paying for duplicate glass.
Are seeds included in a sprouting jar kit?
Not in any of the three kits compared here. Hisredsun, Huamai Trade and IYWY list jars and hardware, while IYWY explicitly says seeds are not included. Add suitable edible sprouting seed to the setup cost and check the current box contents before ordering.
Can I sprout ordinary garden seed?
Do not assume garden seed is suitable for eating as a sprout. It may have been treated or packed for outdoor cultivation rather than food use. Choose seed clearly sold for edible sprouting and reject a packet that arrives open, damp or otherwise damaged.
Is a Brussels sprout packet the same as bean sprouts?
No. Brussels sprout seed grows into a large outdoor brassica over many months and produces buttons along a stalk. Bean sprouts are young shoots grown for a few days in a draining jar. The packets, method, space and harvest are not interchangeable.
What does a first jar setup cost in this comparison?
The captured two-jar kits cost about £14.49 to about £16.99 on amazon.co.uk on 15 October 2026, before seed. The smallest listed sprouting seed packet was about £1.48. Prices move, and a single-jar or lids-only setup can cost less if you already own suitable glassware.
When should I buy tinned bean sprouts instead?
Buy a tin when you need an ingredient now and do not want to grow a batch. Tinned sprouts are cooked food, not viable seed, so they will not grow in a jar. Follow the storage and cooking instructions on the tin rather than a home-sprouting method.

Related pages

Brussels sprout seeds

Can you eat sprouts raw?

Sprouts

Best sprouting jar kit: ratings, sleeves, and rust

How to grow sprouts in a jar without standing water

Sources

Public UK sources for this comparison. amazon.co.uk listings were read on 15 October 2026.

  1. RHS, Brussels sprouts: grow your own (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  2. RHS, Evesham Special (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  3. RHS, Club root (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  4. Regulation (EU) No 208/2013, sprout traceability (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  5. NICS Well, sprouted seeds safety advice (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  6. Food Standards Scotland, treatments for sprouted seeds (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  7. Food Standards Agency, STEC business guidance (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  8. The Guardian, Alys Fowler, 4 April 2020 (retrieved 15 October 2026)