2023 Gardening Thread
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AeroGardens are so much fun! It's so nice to watch something green and growing in the dead of winter, and that boost of full spectrum light is nice, too.
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They're easy to assemble. 🙂
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Hikr, does that trellis fasten to the light hood now? Mine don't (first generation). I've been going to drill some holes to fasten mine. Looks like they got the same idea. Those trellises with no support are pretty much useless. Herbs don't really need a trellis, FYI. Also FYI for future gardens, it's way, way cheaper to buy a pkg of grow sponges and a qt of liquid nutrients and use your own seeds than to buy the over priced kits. You can reuse the plastic baskets. Make note of any seeds you like from kits. Sometimes you can buy the same seeds yourself or use another variety.
I have never once been able to get chives to grow.
Don't forget you need distilled water for AGs, no tap water or well water. I use rainwater in the summer and store some in a big plastic trash can in the fall, then harvest snow once it's available. Water is over $1/gallon here so when i have a bunch of gardens running it gets spendy to buy water. WM used to have water fairly cheap, but of course no WM here.
Plants in dirt benefit from the the spillover light from AGs. If you want to grow something that won't do well hydroponically, put the pot next to the AG so the "daylight" hrs are extended. Very helpful on short winter days especially.
You'll have so much fun with your garden! Congrats!
I have never once been able to get chives to grow.
Don't forget you need distilled water for AGs, no tap water or well water. I use rainwater in the summer and store some in a big plastic trash can in the fall, then harvest snow once it's available. Water is over $1/gallon here so when i have a bunch of gardens running it gets spendy to buy water. WM used to have water fairly cheap, but of course no WM here.
Plants in dirt benefit from the the spillover light from AGs. If you want to grow something that won't do well hydroponically, put the pot next to the AG so the "daylight" hrs are extended. Very helpful on short winter days especially.
You'll have so much fun with your garden! Congrats!
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Just checked out Aerogardens. They are very expensive in Canada. $1000 for the farm garden. I may have to think on this a bit longer. Make sure I have maximum three season production from my deck garden and raised bed garden first. Then go for the Aerogarden. I’ll be very curious to see how well it works @hikr00 !
I started leeks indoors this morning. Nothing else needs to be started until the end of the month.
I started leeks indoors this morning. Nothing else needs to be started until the end of the month.
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Today is day one! Let’s see what happens next. Lol. I planted peas, chives, thyme and basil. It’s a nice looking unit. I left a couple of spots open for other things. I am not sure what I want to plant there. I debated strawberries but I’ve been thinking about that and leaning towards “not my best idea”. The unit came with a pack of preseeded herbs. I also bought a package of the seed pods with no seed in them and that’s what I planted the peas in. I have flat parsley, Italian parsley, dill, mint and Thai basil preseeded pods left. I am so excited for this.
SD the trellis attaches at the base unit vs the top. I have never used a trellis with the herbs but the peas will need it so I went ahead and put it up. Grow sponges? How do they work with the roots etc? These have what looks like dirt in the basket but maybe there’s a sponge underneath? I do have two bottles of plant food as one came with each package of baskets etc. I figured it would cheaper to get more locally vs ordering from Aerogarden.
@RedSpruce I saw the Farm units on the website and those were really pricy. This one was pricier than I’d like but I’ve been wanting one for a long time and I’ve kept my eye out for sales etc. They do have sales. You can sign up for their emails. My niece has the Sprout model and grows tomatoes in it. She is loving it. That one was under a hundred dollars (US).
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I'm not sure peas will work in an AG. Not everything likes being grown in water. Let me know how that goes. I haven't looked at their seed kits in yrs so don't know if they've added new plants or not.
They do make a strawberry kit but I think it requires a special setup.
Baby Romaine lettuce does very well in AGs. Many herbs do, too.
I like that new trellis design. The old ones I have attach only to the post of the hood with no other support. Useless.
They must have changed the growing medium, too. I have little round pellets that drop into the baskets, with a dimple molded in the top for seeds.
Start all your pods at the same time. It doesn't work to start some later because taller plants will shade new sprouts and they won't do well. Basil is likely to go wild and hog up space and light. It usually does very well.
You can't use just any nutrients in AGs, but if you discover something cheaper that works, let me know.
I can see I haven't kept up with AG's progress so have to do some research.
You need a tall model with 3' hood to grow tomatoes and peppers. They get huge.
Except for herbs and lettuce, chances are you can't grow enough food to save money on it, especially if you buy water. I think all the hoods are LED now so that saves on power.
They do make a strawberry kit but I think it requires a special setup.
Baby Romaine lettuce does very well in AGs. Many herbs do, too.
I like that new trellis design. The old ones I have attach only to the post of the hood with no other support. Useless.
They must have changed the growing medium, too. I have little round pellets that drop into the baskets, with a dimple molded in the top for seeds.
Start all your pods at the same time. It doesn't work to start some later because taller plants will shade new sprouts and they won't do well. Basil is likely to go wild and hog up space and light. It usually does very well.
You can't use just any nutrients in AGs, but if you discover something cheaper that works, let me know.
I can see I haven't kept up with AG's progress so have to do some research.
You need a tall model with 3' hood to grow tomatoes and peppers. They get huge.
Except for herbs and lettuce, chances are you can't grow enough food to save money on it, especially if you buy water. I think all the hoods are LED now so that saves on power.
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SD yes, I’ll let you know how the peas do. I joined a couple of Facebook groups for Aerogarden and a forum online and I had read peas were possible so I figured why not? If it’s a bust, it’s a bust. This is just a fun project for me but not meant to be a money saver. I mainly wanted it for herbs so I could have fresh ones through the winter inside. My niece grows the cherry tomatoes in her Sprout which is pretty small. I would bet that regular sized tomatoes are too big, peppers too as you said. I did read that basil is very enthusiastic about growth. That is why I only planted one type (my kit came with Genovese and Thai) I only want one I’ll have to use a machete on.
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I watched a few YouTube videos by a couple of local gardening gurus, and decided to start more seeds. It may be a bit early, but they didn’t think so.
I planted shallots, red bunching onions, cantaloupe, New Ace bell peppers, jalapeño peppers, Magic Mountain cherry tomatoes, plum regal tomatoes, Prospero basil and Green Forest parsley. The last two are our most frequently used herbs.
I was disgusted to find only ten seeds in each tomato package! I will be finding another seed supplier next year.
I planted shallots, red bunching onions, cantaloupe, New Ace bell peppers, jalapeño peppers, Magic Mountain cherry tomatoes, plum regal tomatoes, Prospero basil and Green Forest parsley. The last two are our most frequently used herbs.
I was disgusted to find only ten seeds in each tomato package! I will be finding another seed supplier next year.
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@RedSpruce only ten seeds? Wow, that seems a little stingy. I’m hoping to plant the seeds I have that I’ll move outdoors for the summer. Basically just my herbs - mint, chamomile, basil, parsley, thyme, oregano, rosemary. I can’t do the potatoes and strawberries until it’s warmer out. Having another nor’easter Monday night through Tuesday. Sigh….
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The price of seed went up dramatically after 2020. Some companies started offering less seed in order to not have to raise prices. Sometimes, if a variety is very new the amount of seed is limited, too. There's been a few times I've been surprised like that.
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We're waiting on a storm here, 8" of snow and 40 mph winds and other mean nasty ugly things. That can only mean one thing, video of people surfing on Lake Superior again.
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My leeks are up! So is the basil. Talk about fast germination! I see other stems unbending from below ground too.
I cracked out my Gardening Journal and updated it. I keep track of all expenses and yields, as well as plans and lists of what I’ve planted…and how it did. Also lists of what I made from the produce, and what I hope to make.
I cracked out my Gardening Journal and updated it. I keep track of all expenses and yields, as well as plans and lists of what I’ve planted…and how it did. Also lists of what I made from the produce, and what I hope to make.
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My Aerogarden basil and thyme have peeled through the soil! Also I see one of the peas I planted has broken open and I see the plant emerging. This is day 5 so I’m thrilled! I still haven’t gotten around to planting my other seeds that I want for outside planting if the weather ever breaks.
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@RedSpruce a gardening journal is a good idea. I’ll have to start one.
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