I've been trying to grow some microgreen with a specialized plastic tray without any substrate (it's just a plastic grate in a container with water filled to the level of the grate) and I have already grown radishes in those and everything went well. However, now that I tried to grow peppergrass, it gave off the smell of decomposition and retained it from the moment of germination to the moment of harvest (the greens still looked pretty healthy). I changed water daily.
I try to grow chives now and on the 2nd day I can start feeling the characteristic onion smell, though as far as I understand, it shouldn't? My question is, are both cases normal? Do peppergrass and chives produce any odours when growing them correctly? The difference between radish and peppergrass & chives is that radish seeds came with the growing kit, while chives and peppergrass seeds were bought from the general store, though I didn't find any confirmation that the seeds were coated in any substance and I assume they are sold "as is". Thanks in advance!