Penny Austin
Penny Austin holds a BS in early elementary education with a science specialization emphasizing plant science. She says: “In my kindergarten class, we did more than ‘the typical’ lima beans sprout project.” Maybe it was here that her passion for sprouts started and earned her the nickname, The Sprout Lady among the MCMGA community.
She moved to Bloomington in 1968 as an IU student, then became a teacher, married and raised a family. She’ll celebrate 50 years of marriage in May 2022 at Stonehenge.
In 2008 she became a master gardener. In her words, MCMGA “provides an opportunity to learn more about topics that I might not pursue on my own. The group has interesting people, fun field trips, and opportunities for me to personally blossom.” As an MG she describes a compulsion many of us share. “Each January, I need to start a variety of vegetable plants, just so I can go down into the basement and "sniff the green.” I personally need the growth of the new plants to be in my happy place”.
“MCMGA provides an opportunity to learn more about topics that I might not pursue on my own. The group has interesting people, fun field trips, and opportunities for me to personally blossom.”
Today, Penny is still focused on growing sprouts. “I love to grow food that I harvest and eat. I am interested in healthy foods. Sprouts are healthier than the actual food they grow into. I enjoy having easy to grow mini-plants especially in the winter. I am now into growing more micro-greens in soil than sprouts in jars. I started growing sprouts in the 70’s when the FDA took them out of stores because of the possibility of salmonella. FDA said that home growth was less likely to have an outbreak. Sprouts were not available commercially for years, but there is a comeback and I see sprouts/micro greens are now available in produce sections.”
Penny’s now invested in mushrooms. “My new discovery is that I am currently having fun growing Lion's Mane mushrooms. They are delicious and a nutritional powerhouse.” A new nickname might be in the offing.
Penny and her husband visiting gardens in New Zealand.
