Senior Housing ‘Will Probably Take The Longest To Recover’

The coronavirus pandemic has hit senior housing residents hard. Concentrations of elderly people, especially in nursing homes, have proven tragically susceptible to COVID-19.

In the short run, from a business standpoint, the crisis means senior housing occupancies are down and costs are up. Over the long run, lingering fear among potential residents, or a long recession, might hamper future growth prospects, senior housing experts say. But others say it is possible that the previously forecast silver tsunami will survive the pandemic mostly intact, driving demand for senior housing later in the 2020s.

Nursing home responders

“Of all the asset classes, I’m most concerned about the future of senior housing,” Mizuho Managing Director of Equity Research Toyo Okusanya said. “It will probably take the longest to recover from the pandemic. The headlines about facilities overwhelmed by COVID-19 will affect people’s decision-making. People will have reservations about moving in, maybe for years to come.”

The senior housing asset class is made up of a broad spectrum of living facilities, including independent living, which are essentially apartments for an older population, and assisted living, which provides apartments but also a higher level of service for its elderly population, such as meals or group activities. The term also refers to long-term care facilities — nursing homes and memory-care — that provide healthcare services for elderly residents with chronic conditions.

The pandemic has hit this segment particularly hard. Coronavirus-related deaths at U.S. nursing homes and other long-term care facilities have topped 10,000, the Wall Street Journal estimates, based on data aggregated from state health departments. Assisted living has been impacted as well. Just since Monday, seven COVID-19 deaths were reported at an assisted living facility in McKinney, Texas; 13 residents at a Chandler, Arizona, assisted living facility have died from the pandemic; 65 residents and employees of two facilities in Sacramento County, California, have been reported infected; and South Carolina reported that 46 nursing homes and assisted living facilities had a confirmed case of COVID-19 either among residents or staff.

For now, the lease-up across the spectrum of senior housing properties has ground to a stop, and move-outs are flat or accelerating, Duff & Phelps Managing Director Ross Prindle said.

“You can’t show properties,” Prindle said. “The model of paying a lump sum to move in, that isn’t happening either. It’s come to a halt.”

Occupancy at independent living properties is relatively stable, according to a National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care survey of senior housing executives, but it is trending down for the rest of senior housing, including assisted living and memory care, with the deepest declines reported for nursing homes. About 40% of organizations reporting on their nursing care beds said they experienced an occupancy decline of 10% or more compared with the previous month, NIC said.

Major senior housing owner Welltower reported that between March 27 and April 10, occupancy within its senior housing portfolio, which includes independent and assisted living, fell from 85.4% to 84.2%, and the company anticipates further occupancy losses. Despite fewer customers, expenses are up, especially for assisted living and nursing homes.

Facilities now are hiring more staff, buying more protective gear, which has become more expensive as supplies have been strained, and investing in technology to connect residents with their relatives, the New York Times reports. The industry is in full crisis mode.

“On top of that, most operators don’t qualify for PPP, and the emergency funds dedicated for healthcare are mostly going for hospitals, not senior living facilities,” RSM Senior Manager and Real Estate Senior Analyst Scott Helberg said.

The largest owners, with reserves of capital and access to lines of credit, are probably best equipped to weather the storm, Okusanya said. The REITs mostly have solid balance sheets, but the smaller owners and operators will be hit hard, he said, possibly leading to closures in the near term and further consolidation in the industry later on.

No senior housing expert ventured a firm prediction about what will happen to the industry after the pandemic, but some say that there is a case for optimism in the long run, considering the nation’s demographics

“I’m bullish on the sector in the medium to long term,” said CBRE Vice Chairman Aron Will, who co-heads national senior housing debt and structured finance for CBRE Capital Markets. “There will be pent-up demand in the sector, because the need for assisted living and memory care isn’t going away. It will still be needs-driven.”

The pandemic hasn’t changed the fundamental fact that the average age of Americans is getting older, and will continue to get older over the next few decades, Will said. The shock of the pandemic might make some hesitant to enter senior housing, but even so, the sheer size of the aging generation will support growth in the sector eventually. The older population is going to go up, as is the population of the very oldest, who typically need assisted living and nursing care the most. In 2010, slightly more than 14% of the over-65 population was 85 and older. By 2050, that proportion will increase to more than 21%, the Census Bureau predicts. Those numbers were released before a pandemic that was especially deadly among the elderly swept across the globe.

Another factor that might help the industry in the long term is a slowdown in construction, which had actually started before the pandemic in response to a number of overbuilt markets, Walker & Dunlop Managing Director Mark Myers said. NIC reported that 17,062 new senior housing units started construction during the four quarters ending in March 2020, the fewest new starts for the industry since 2014.

“It’s going to slow down a lot more,” Myers said. “If nothing else, lenders are going to be much more careful about projects.”

Not everyone is sure that demographics will be enough to support senior housing growth in a post-pandemic environment. For one thing, even after the pandemic, there will be a recession, and it could be a long, painful one.

The recession will put a damper on demand for senior housing, Okusanya said, especially if it lasts long enough to hit the housing market hard. That is because most people sell their house or their investments to move into senior living in the first place (typically independent living).

The inability of people to move into independent living has longer-term ramifications for all of senior housing, Helberg said, because people tend to transition from there into assisted living or memory care.

“Demand is a concern on the independent side,” Helberg said. “In one way or another, the current crisis might encourage people to age in place longer.”

CBRE’s Will believes assisted living and memory care will do well regardless of what happens in independent living, because those sectors outperformed after the last recession.

“Institutional capital came into the sector post-recession last time, and I believe it will make the same calculation this time, because senior housing is recession-resistant, if not recession-proof,” Will said.

Beyond there being a need for senior housing, or the question of a recession, the industry will change in the wake of the crisis, and do what it needs to do to help restore confidence, Will said. Regulators will likely require better infection control, and many owners and operators will go beyond what is mandated to reassure potential residents and their adult children.

“I hope and I pray and I think that infection control is going to get a bigger focus throughout healthcare, including senior housing,” Myers said. “Most operators have been vigilant about controlling infection during the pandemic, but there have been outbreaks even at the best-run facilities, so the industry needs to do more.” https://www.bisnow.com/national/news/senior-housing/pandemic-clobbers-senior-housing-in-the-short-term-but-long-term-still-hopeful-104041

Pressure Mounts To ‘Commandeer’ Hotels For Coronavirus

Homelessness in the U.S. was already at crisis levels before the coronavirus hit. When it did, some cities began arranging for people experiencing homelessness to stay socially isolated in empty hotels.

Fort Lauderdale has been doing the opposite. In March, city commissioners voted to crack down on the homeless, moving to extend a ban on camping, which now covers downtown, to areas within 1,000 feet of any school or child care center. A second and final vote on the matter has been postponed until the coronavirus pandemic subsides.

Jeff Weinberger, a longtime homeless advocate and founder of the October 22 Alliance to End Homelessness, is organizing a demonstration Thursday to call on the city to mandate hotels be used to house Fort Lauderdale’s at-risk homeless population. He said activists will be gathering at the Broward County Government Center.

“We want to see [the city] provide motel rooms immediately to everyone in an at-risk category,” he said.

The group eventually hopes local governments can provide permanent housing for all of them.

Two weeks ago, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Project Roomkey to house shelter residents in 6,000 hotel rooms, City Lab reported.

Other cities followed: New York City is putting about 6,000 people in hotels. Los Angeles secured 1,700 rooms and King County, Washington, is using 400.

The governor of Connecticut ordered shelters to move residents to hotel rooms if social distancing isn’t possible.

Fort Lauderdale’s city leaders said that kids walking by homeless encampments see people doing drugs and defecating in public, the Sun-Sentinel reports. If the stricter measure were to pass, violators could be fined up to $500 and jailed for up to 60 days.

Homelessness has been a contentious issue in Fort Lauderdale for decades, with various “tent cities” popping up. In the early 2000s, the city made world news by outlawing feedings of homeless people. About a year ago, an encampment by the city’s main library was cleared and about 80 people moved into permanent housing.

But Broward County still has an estimated 2,300 people experiencing homelessness. Amid the coronavirus, some shelters stopped taking in new people last month.

Weinberger said he found it ironic that in March, when the Zandaam cruise ship docked in Fort Lauderdale with coronavirus patients, Broward County Commissioner Michael Udine suggested “commandeering” an empty hotel to isolate passengers.

“They can commandeer a hotel for people who can afford to take a huge cruise, but they can’t commandeer a hotel for people at risk or at shelters?” Weinberger said.

The federal government does have the right to seize property for emergencies, according to Hotel Management. When President Donald Trump declared a national emergency under the Stafford Act on March 13, he authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency to use eminent domain to acquire facilities and supplies. FEMA could immediately appropriate buildings, land and supplies, but would have to compensate owners for it.

States have and are considering similar measures, and fighting them would be “an uphill battle” for any property owner, four attorneys at Carlton Fields wrote last month. So far, governments have been negotiating with hotels, not doing hostile takeovers, in hopes the facilities will be happy to have revenue coming in.

But according to USA Today, around the country, hotel executives have had reservations about taking in quarantined people, citing staff who would need proper personal protective equipment, whether they could have sufficient sanitization procedures in place, and whether those locations would fail to regain bookings when business picks up again.

In Kentucky, authorities prepared to spend to spend up to $70K to house 40 people at a Springhill Suites for the month of April — but they were turned down by the hotel, the Washington Post reported. Zoning or liability issues were cited as concerns.

The National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty identified $190B in the CARES Act that could potentially be used toward housing people experiencing homelessness.

The homeless in Fort Lauderdale typically shower and wash at the library, bus station or fast-food restaurants — all of which are now closed. Though there hasn’t been a documented outbreak of the coronavirus among the state’s homeless, there is also no testing system in place.

The county is considering spending $550K to purchase mobile shower/restroom stations, and the head of the local Convention & Visitors Bureau is in discussions with hotels about what can be done. Some homeless advocates believe that funds should be spent expanding permanent options for the homeless, rather than on short-term hotel stays.

“[Forty] years of failed housing policy has allowed private developers to decide what housing gets built, and it’s rarely the affordable kind,” Weinberger wrote in an editorial for the Sun-Sentinel. “All with the blessings of politicians at every level of government.”
https://www.bisnow.com/south-florida/news/hotel/hotels-homeless-pandemic-104029

Cuomo Details Plans For Reopening NY – Construction Before Retail, Upstate 1st

Parts of New York could start reopening as early as May 15, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday as he outlined a two-phase plan to begin reopening the state, emphasizing that different regions will have different schedules but that the dense population of New York City will need to have at least some “summer activities” open for residents, in what appeared to be a contradiction to comments from the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio.

KEY FACTS

Cuomo announced a two-phase plan to reopen the state, but said the timing will vary by region: upstate New York is more likely to enter the first phase after May 15 “with  certain precautions” while downstate—which includes New York City, Westchester, and Long Island—could take longer to reopen.

Phase one of reopening will include construction and manufacturing with low risk, Cuomo said.

Phase two will be more complex, Cuomo said, and rely on a matrix of which businesses are more essential and at a lower risk of infecting people.

A two-week waiting period—which is the virus’s incubation period—will happen between phases to monitor the effect of implementing each phase and the infection rate, Cuomo said.

Cuomo said reopening is dependent on a 14-day decline in the state and regional hospitalization rate, citing federal guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cuomo said downstate New York, which includes New York City, will need summer activities permitted for residents, a comment that appeared to push back against de Blasio’s idea to keep pools and beaches closed throughout the summer.

Crucial quote

“You can’t tell people in dense urban environments ‘We have nothing for you to do,’ there’s a sanity equation here,” Cuomo said.

What to watch for

What happens after May 15, which is the date New York’s stay-at-home orders expire. “We get to May 15, we assume we’ll see a decline in state for 14 days, but which regions are in decline for 14 days? That’s when you start the conversation to get to phase one in that region,” Cuomo said.

News peg

De Blasio came under criticism for saying public pools and summer camps will not be open for the season. “Keep expectations low for now,” de Blasio said April 16. Cuomo and de Blasio previously sparred over New York City school closures, after de Blasio announced the city’s public schools would remain closed for the rest of the academic year⁠. Cuomo said that power to make the decision is his “legal authority” and stressed that school reopenings must be part of a regional plan.

Key background

Cuomo said that the state will be relying on businesses to do their own analysis of how risky it would be for them to reopen. Businesses will need to provide information about what precautions and safeguards they will put in place to protect workers. “A caveat,” Cuomo said, “is you can’t do anything in any region that would increase the number of visitors to that region.” If something is opened in Syracuse that would attract visitors from New Jersey, Connecticut or downstate New York, there are fears that the coronavirus infection rate could spike again. “Coordination [between states] is important,” Cuomo said.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2020/04/26/cuomo-details-plans-for-reopening-new-york-says-nyc-needs-summer-activities-open-for-residents/#707c5853296d

Non-force majeure legal defenses for real estate contractors and developers

The abrupt market shift as a result of the pandemic has left many wondering how to carry out contractual terms. Developers and contractors in particular have wanted to leverage the force majeure or “act of god” clauses that are standard in many contracts to renegotiate existing agreements. However, contracts without force majeure language, aren’t necessarily exempt.
“Most contracts include such provisions; however, in their absence the party seeking to be excused might look to other legal defenses outside of the contract terms,” says David Alvarado, an attorney with the Los Angeles offices of commercial real estate law firm Crosbie Gliner Schiffman Southard & Swanson. “Specifically, the defenses of impossibility and frustration of purpose have similar analyses, but do not require any force majeure clause or other contractual language.”
To use the defense of impossibility, the arguing party is—as stated— not possible, not simply difficult. “For a party to have its performance excused or delayed under the theory of impossibility, performance must be rendered impossible by an unforeseen event—more difficult or very expensive performance will not constitute impossibility,” explains Alvarado. “In connection with the pandemic, contractors may argue that their performance has been made impossible by general business conditions due to the pandemic; and government regulations that prevent them from operating.” The former will not be considered an impossibility that excuses performance, and the latter will depend on the location, although most local governments have not suspended construction.
Frustration is often argued when the agreement is prevented by no fault of the party’s involved. However, even this argument can be challenging to win. “The doctrine is limited to cases of extreme hardship where the subsequent unanticipated event almost totally destroys the value of the consideration to be rendered,” says Alvarado. “Note that if a contract contains a force majeure clause, it is less likely that a contractor can successfully rely on the doctrine of frustration to excuse its performance obligations. By agreeing to categories of events that will excuse a contractor’s performance through a force majeure clause, the contracting parties have made a clear and deliberate allocation such risk and can no longer contend that the non-occurrence of same was a basic assumption on which the contract was made.”
Alvarado notes that the concept of a force majeure clause may exist in the contract, even when the term it not used. “A typical clause might delineate specific events as grounds contractual relief, including change orders, acts of God, and labor strikes. In addition, some clauses may include broader language such as ‘causes beyond the contractor’s control,’ but counts may be required to construe such phrases narrowly, consistent with the otherwise enumerated events,” he says.
In addition, many construction contracts address delays that impact timing and costs. “Note as well that most contracts will have express notice provisions for claiming delays and additional costs, including the time limits for giving proper notice, the contents of such notice, who must be copied and the method of delivery,” says Alvarado. “In addition, some contracts include provisions by which the contractor may forfeit rights to adjustments if the notice is not timely and properly made. If an owner receives a delay claim, the contract should be carefully reviewed to make sure the claim qualifies and that the notice is timely and properly submitted with appropriate support.”
https://www.globest.com/2020/04/23/alternatives-to-force-majeure-clauses

NYC rent board report estimates 2.5% to 3.5% increases

As the mayor calls for a rent freeze, a Rent Guidelines Board report Thursday estimated that rent increases for rent-stabilized apartments should fall between 2.5 percent and 3.5 percent for one-year leases and 3.3 percent to 6.75 percent for two-year leases.

The board, in its first virtual meeting, discussed the report compiled by its staff that recommends rent increases using five different “commensurate” formulas that consider operating costs, revenues and inflation.

The formulas are designed to preserve net operating income for landlords of rent-stabilized buildings, which edged down by 0.6 percent from 2017 to 2018 to $535 monthly per apartment, the first drop since 2003, according to a previous report.
The formulas’ estimates are considered a starting point.
“You are not required by law to pick one of these formulas and go with it,” said the board’s executive director, Andrew McLaughlin.

One of the board’s tenant representatives, Leah Goodridge, an attorney for the Housing Project at advocacy group Mobilization for Justice, noted that preserving landlords’ net operating income isn’t part of the board members’ mandate.
Joseph Strasburg, president of the landlord group Rent Stabilization Association, which supports rent increases, disagreed. He said the board is supposed to provide relief from rent-stabilization restrictions.

“Why do you even need the RGB?” he said during an interview. “The fact is that it’s not following its mission.”
Thursday’s report, which reflects data from April 2019 to March 2020, found that the price index of operating costs for stabilized apartments in the city increased by 3.7 percent. The report projected it will jump by 2.4 percent between now and March 2021.
The meeting kicked off with the tenant representatives questioning the decision to hold the board’s meetings virtually, rather than canceling its proceedings. They and tenant advocacy groups had called for a rent freeze and suspension of the board, believing tenants would be at a disadvantage if they cannot make their case to the board in person.

Mayor Bill de Blasio had initially called for the same move, but later indicated that the state wouldn’t agree to cancel the hearings. He instead called on the board to freeze rents. The board’s decision will apply to rent-stabilized leases that come up for renewal beginning in October.
“I’ve heard over and over again it seems tone deaf and insensitive for us to move forward as a board,” Goodridge said.
In March, as social-distancing mandates began, landlord groups asked for the board’s meetings to be postponed. They have condemned the mayor’s calls for a rent freeze as an attempt to influence the ostensibly independent board before its proceedings even began. All nine board members were appointed by de Blasio.

The latest fight over the board’s actions highlights long-standing criticism of how it functions, which is further complicated by the coronavirus crisis. The city has nearly 1 million rent-stabilized apartments.
The board’s chairman, David Reiss, said that convening is the “one fundamental responsibility that this board has.” He said there could be unintended consequences if the board did not meet. Though he didn’t lay out what those consequences might be, board members indicated that it is unclear who would decide rent increases on stabilized apartments this year — the mayor or governor, for instance — if the board failed to meet.

Public member Christian Gonzalez-Rivera noted that meeting virtually may be the most transparent option available for determining rent increases. “If this is as public as it is going to get,” he said, “that means we have even more responsibility.”
https://therealdeal.com/2020/04/23/rent-board-report-estimates-2-5-to-3-5-increases/

Fannie, Freddie will buy loans in forbearance

Fannie Mae (OTCQB:FNMA +2.9%) and Freddie Mac (OTCQB:FMCC +3.8%) can now buy some single-family mortgages in forbearance that meet certain eligibility criteria, a move intended to “provide liquidity to mortgage markets and allow originators to keep lending,” the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

Some borrowers have requested payment forbearance soon after closing on their mortgages and before the lender could deliver the loan to Fannie or Freddie.

Under GSE requirements, mortgage loans either in forbearance or delinquent are ineligible for GSEs to acquire.

Today’s action lifts that restriction for a limited period of time and only for mortgages meeting certain eligibility criteria.

Those loans will also be priced to mitigate the increased risk of loss to Fannie and Freddie.

Under the CARES Act, borrowers of government-backed loans can delay monthly payments for up to a year.

With more than 3M loans already in the forbearance program, the two GSEs wouldn’t buy recently closed loans that soon entered forbearance.

That tightened credit for all borrowers, as lenders were afraid that new mortgages will go into forbearance before they can deliver them to Fannie or Freddie.

https://seekingalpha.com/news/3563163-fannie-freddie-will-buy-loans-in-forbearance

Vegetables you can plant now (indoors and out) during coronavirus pandemic

As you practice social distancing, use this time to introduce two new friends into your life: a shovel and a pair of gloves.

During stressful times, nature can be a peaceful refuge. And, coinciding with the timing of the coronavirus, we’re also at the start of something a little brighter — gardening season.

“There’s a meditative feeling you get from the repetitive tasks of gardening,” says Teddy Moynihan, founder of Plowshare Farms in Pipersville, Bucks County. “Plus it’s an action you can take to nourish yourself in the face of something that feels like we have no control over.”

While stay-at-home orders are in place, outdoor activity is still permitted, meaning you’re in the clear to venture into your backyard or garden plot. (Just don’t bring others along to watch you plant.)

And even if you don’t have green space at your disposal, you can still take part in some planting projects. Here’s a guide on how to garden now, indoors and out, as we look ahead to spring and summer produce.

“Gardening, at the core, is an act in faith of the future,” notes Moynihan.

What to plant outside now

If you have access to a garden, a variety of veggies — beets, carrots, radishes, peas, spinach, kale, and collards — can all be planted now.

Chris Price / Getty Images

Growing vegetables is just what many of us need right now.

“I really love hakurei turnips — it’s a salad turnip, mild and less spicy than a radish,” says Moynihan. “It takes just about 30 days to get a baby, ping-pong-ball sized one. As they get bigger, I like to throw them in soups, or glaze them with butter, chicken stock, and a drop of honey.”

If you live in Philadelphia or South Jersey, Moynihan says you could also get a start on lettuce and radicchio. Those in cooler parts of the region can test their luck against frosts or wait a week or two.

“Unless you’re planting potatoes or onions, most of what you plant now will be by seed,” notes Moynihan. “And for the home garden, I always recommend direct seeding. It’s hard to get enough sun and warmth to create a strong starter without a grow light, so come tomato season, I recommend trying to find those plants at a farmer’s market.”

Where to get seeds

The next time you’re buying groceries, take a look to see if your local supermarket sells seeds, too. Stores including Aldi, Mariposa, and Whole Foods often have a seed rack, enabling you to avoid an extra trip.

Otherwise, try your local hardware store, also equipped with gardening supplies. Deemed essential businesses, most hardware stores remain open, including Lowe’s and Home Depot. Some, like Fairmount Hardware, are offering online order and curbside pickup options.

Local plant shops are another place to check. Froehlich’s Farm & Garden Center in Furlong, Bucks County is one that is offering delivery and curbside pickup. In Philadelphia, Greensgrow Farms is also launching an online site and offering curbside pickup.

To order seeds online, Moynihan recommends any of the following companies: Truelove Seeds, Rohrer Seeds, Johnny’s Selected Seeds, Fedco Seeds, and Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.

If you don’t have a yard

If you don’t have garden space but have a balcony or patio, there is a lot you can still plant.

“You can make anything grow in a container if you have a big enough container,” says Sally McCabe, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society associate director of community education.

FedericoChiccoDodiFC / Getty Images/iStockphoto

If you don’t have a garden, you can still plant vegetables right now.

This time of year, McCabe recommends planting greens and herbs, excluding basil, a warmer-weather herb. Ideally you’d start with a five-gallon bucket or larger, but you can certainly get creative, whether with a window box or old wash bin. “If all you’ve got are milk cartons, tip them on their side and fill them with soil,” says McCabe. “To pump out full-size plants, you need something bigger, but you can still end up with small and happy plants.”

Some more container gardening tips:

Make sure to cut or drill drainage holes, no matter the container, and after it rains, check on your plants. You don’t want them sitting in water.

“The more sun you have, the better they’ll do, but it’s hard to mess up herbs and greens,” notes McCabe. “If you seed too many, just thin them and eat them as microgreens.”

Make sure to place your containers close together if you decide to grow in multiple pots. McCabe explains that this will help keep the humidity higher between the plants, and the soil from drying out.

If you don’t have access to green space

“Even if you live in an apartment with no balcony, at the very least you can be growing sprouts,” says McCabe.

And you don’t need to go out and buy alfalfa seeds to do it. Pantry items like chickpeas, lentils, black-eyed peas, mung beans, and soybeans can all be turned into sprouts. The legumes need to be dried (i.e., not out of can) and they need to be whole (i.e., split peas won’t work).

You’ll thoroughly rinse the legumes before placing them in a jar with water, and covering the top with cheesecloth or other breathable material, like a sheet of paper towel. Then, the sprouting process begins.

You can find detailed information on how to sprout all sorts of legumes online, but the process for all is simple. First, soak them overnight. Then, you’ll cycle through rinsing and draining the legumes (at least twice a day) until they begin to sprout. Within two to five days, your newest salad topper will be ready. Sprouts make for a great snack as is, too.

“Most beans will sprout, and if they’re not sprouting by the fourth or fifth day, just give them a rinse and cook them as you would normally,” says McCabe.

Jowita Stachowiak / Getty Images

Sprouts are easy to grow at home.

If sprouts aren’t your thing, try microgreens (the tender, nutrient-packed shoots of veggie plants). These can be grown in a sunny window or under a fluorescent light. Seed companies like Johnny’s sell special microgreen mixes, but almost any vegetable seed will work. If available, radish, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage seeds are a great place to start. Plant the seeds in a soil-filled tray (or improvise with a baking dish), and from there, all you need is light and water.

Take a moment to examine your spice cabinet, too.

“If you’ve got whole dill, fennel, coriander, and mustard seeds, they can grow when planted in a flower pot with potting soil,” says McCabe. “To get the plants to full size, you’ll need six to eight hours of sun, but you can supplement with fluorescent or LED light — just no incandescent bulbs.”

Now’s also a prime time to give a little extra attention to houseplants you might already own. Repot, propagate, or dive into any other project you’ve been putting off. Some shops, like Brewerytown’s Cultivaire Plant Store, also remain open for online ordering and curbside pickup (free delivery within 2-mile radius).

Growing from table scraps

For a fun DIY project, turn your table scraps into plants.

“You can experiment with so much right from what you buy at the store — potatoes, carrot tops, celery, really any produce item that has seeds and is labeled as certified USDA organic,” says Temple University horticulturist Benjamin Snyder.

You’ll find all sorts of table scrap tutorials on YouTube, explaining how you can plant individual garlic cloves, get celery to regrow from its base, and cultivate a thriving mint crop from a single cutting.

To learn how to grow your own ginger, papaya, and pineapple, check out the Inquirer’s tutorial with Snyder at inquirer.com/food/how-to-grow-your-own-ginger-papaya-pineapple-20190624.html.
https://www.inquirer.com/health/coronavirus/gardening-vegetables-plant-vegetables-containers-garden-yard-coronavirus-philadelphia-new-jersey-20200330.html