The first time Poland-based product designer Maja Ganszyniec got an email from Ikea inviting her to design products for a special collection, she read it “twice to make sure it was not spam.” That was in 2010, and the partnership resulted in Ikea’s popular PS 2014 line of small-footprint furniture and accessories for urban apartment dwellers.

This time around, Ikea asked Ganszyniec to design a product to grow microgreens indoors while conserving water and energy.  Her terra cotta seed sprouter is part of Ikea’s new Användbar collection:

Photography by Ernest Wińczyk.

Above: Designer Maja Ganszyniec of Studio Ganszyniec is a graduate of the Royal College of Art in London and the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow.

Above: An Användbar Sprouter has a glazed stoneware base and two terra cotta tiers to sprout beans or lentils. “The porous red clay keeps the sprouter damp, which helps the sprouts to grow,” notes Ikea.

Above: A two-tier Användbar Sprouter is 7.5 inches in diameter; $19.99 from Ikea.

Above: Photograph by Ernest Wińczyk, courtesy of Studio Ganszyniec.

“Sprouts are great source of nutrition and vitamins all year-round,” says designer Ganszyniec. “Not many people know, but they grow better in the darkness.”

Above: Over time the red color will deepen, “which is natural for this type of clay material,” notes Ikea.

Above: For more of our favorite ways to sprout your supper, see Origami Microgreens: The Gentle Art of Sprouting Salad and Eat-In Kitchen: An Undercounter Herb Garden.