MICROGREEN BUSINESS GUIDE · NOVATO, CA

Start a microgreen business in Novato, CA.

Most Novato residents do not realize that almost none of the microgreens served in local restaurants were actually grown in Marin. They get trucked up from the East Bay or down from Sonoma, cut days before they hit a plate. The Novato grower who closes that gap first becomes the default supplier for the whole north Marin corridor.

Quick Answer

You can start a microgreen business in Novato with under $400 in initial equipment and grow it into a $2,500 to $6,500 per month side income within 90 days. Here is the local demand picture, the unit economics at Novato wholesale prices, and the operating system used by working microgreen farms.

How many of the restaurants along Grant Avenue and out in the Hamilton area right now are plating microgreens that were not actually cut in Marin County this week?

What Novato buys today

Novato sits at the top of Marin, a county whose identity is wrapped up in local food and farm advocacy, yet the local sourcing for delicate fresh greens is far thinner than the marketing would suggest. Restaurants in the downtown core, the spots around Hamilton, and the cafes serving the commuter base all read the same wholesale catalogs that growers further away service.

The Saturday farmers market scene across Marin is well established and pulls a buyer who already understands premium produce. Layer in the juice bar and wellness culture along the 101 corridor, plus the natural grocery scene, and the direct-to-consumer channel becomes a real second leg for the business beyond restaurants.

For indoor growing, the Marin climate is about as forgiving as it gets in the country. Mild year-round temperatures keep a spare room or garage inside the 65 to 75 degree window without much intervention, which protects margin and keeps the operation simple.

If a grower in San Rafael or Petaluma locks down the Novato restaurant list in the next 60 days, what does that cost you in walked-away revenue over the next two years?

The math, in Novato prices

Novato sits in the mid tier of California wholesale pricing, with Marin chef-driven accounts paying a real premium for genuinely local trays. Here is what the unit economics look like at conservative Novato numbers.

Startup cost

$400

Trays, soil, seed, lights. Used gear cuts this in half.

Per-tray net

$20-$30

After seed, soil, packaging, delivery.

Trays per week

100

Target for $3K-$5K/mo at Novato pricing.

Break-even week

Week 4

First positive cash week. Most growers hit it.

What that looks like in Novato square footage

A 10 by 10 foot room with two vertical shelving units holds 60 to 80 active trays. That is enough to produce $3,000 to $5,000 per month in Novato at standard wholesale prices. A two-car garage doubles it. A basement triples it.

Picture the version of your week where Sunday is the planting day, Tuesday is delivery up and down Grant Avenue, Saturday is the farmers market, and the app tells you exactly which trays to cut. What changes about how you spend the other four days when the business runs on a system?

Three things every working microgreen farm in Novato runs on

  1. A seed density and watering plan you trust. The number one cause of failed trays for new growers is over- or under-seeding. The cheat sheet inside Grown Like A Pro gives you grams per 10x20, soak hours, blackout days, harvest day, and watering for sixty-one varieties.
  2. A rotation tracker. Once you are running thirty-plus trays per week, you cannot remember what is in blackout, what is in light growth, what harvests Tuesday. A spreadsheet works for the first month. After that you need a system that pings you the day before each harvest and reorders seed before you run out.
  3. A customer + invoice layer. Restaurants in Novato want predictable weekly invoices and net-15 terms. Farmers market customers want clamshell tracking. Both want consistency. The app handles both.

The IKEA test

If you can follow an IKEA instruction sheet without screaming at the family, you can grow microgreens at a commercial level in Novato. The steps are about that difficulty: open the box, lay out the parts, follow the picture, repeat. Trays are the bookcase. Seed is the dowels.

If you ever did struggle with the IKEA bookshelf, that is exactly why Glappy lives inside the app. Glappy is the in-app coach that breaks every step down barney style, in your own language, from "how do I plant my first tray" to "why is this tray going leggy at day five and what do I do about it tonight." Type the question, get a step-by-step answer. There is no question too basic. The whole point is that a Novato grower starting today is not on their own.

What you are not buying

You are not buying a course. You are not buying a hype product. You are not buying seed from us, and you are not buying trays from us. We do not sell either. Grown Like A Pro is the operating system you run your Novato farm on. The growing happens in your basement.

Try Grown Like A Pro free for 30 days →

Novato microgreen FAQ

How much can I make growing microgreens in Novato?
A working microgreen farm in Novato produces $3,000 to $8,000 per month within 90 days of starting. The math: 100 trays per week, $20 to $30 net revenue per tray, harvested in a basement, garage, or spare room. The ceiling is set by how many restaurants and farmers market customers you can serve, not by the growing setup.
Is it legal to sell microgreens in CA?
Yes. In most of California, microgreens fall under the state's cottage food law for direct-to-consumer retail at farmers markets and to private customers. Restaurant wholesale typically requires a basic food handler permit. Verify with the California Department of Agriculture before you sign a wholesale contract.
What microgreens sell best in Novato?
Sunflower, pea shoots, and radish are the three highest-volume sellers in nearly every U.S. city, including Novato. Broccoli is the highest-margin variety because of its sulforaphane reputation with health-focused buyers. Specialty varieties like amaranth and shiso command premium pricing from chef-driven restaurants.
How much space do I need to grow microgreens in Novato?
A 10 by 10 foot room with two shelving units holds 60 to 80 active trays, which is enough to produce $3,000 to $5,000 per month. A basement, garage corner, spare bedroom, or sunroom all work in Novato's climate. Vertical shelving is the fastest path to higher revenue per square foot.
What is the best app for tracking microgreen production in Novato?
Grown Like A Pro is the operating system used by working microgreen farms in Novato. It handles seed density math, watering schedules, harvest timing, inventory, customer orders, and the financial side. Free 30-day trial with no credit card.
How long does it take to learn to grow microgreens commercially?
Most growers in Novato are selling their first trays within 30 days of starting. Commercial proficiency, meaning you can run 50-plus trays per week without losing crops to mold or under-seeding, takes 60 to 90 days. The seed density and watering math is the single biggest predictor of how fast you get there.
Do I need a license to sell microgreens in Novato?
For farmers market and direct-to-consumer sales in Novato, most growers operate under California's cottage food law with no special license. For wholesale to restaurants and grocery stores, you typically need a basic food handler permit, a sales tax permit, and depending on volume, an inspection from your county health department.
How do I price microgreens to restaurants in Novato?
Restaurant wholesale in Novato runs $1.50 to $2.50 per ounce for standard varieties, $3 to $5 per ounce for specialty varieties like shiso, micro basil, or amaranth. Sell by the pound for repeat accounts. Local fresh commands a premium over the shipped-in product that most Novato restaurants currently buy.

Related guides

Once you have the Novato math in your head, the next read is the density chart that drives every tray you plant.

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