91 replies to this topic

[PsyBearknot]

So due to some health concerns the family is doing a major overhaul of the diet.
Due to some financial concerns I was given the go ahead to start some indoor gardening activities.

The goal to start - tomatoes and peppers, herbs, greens (leaf, head, micro and wheatgrass) all to supplement the food budget. (Of course some shitake, Oysters and reishi but that will be a different set up). Would also like to do some onions and radishes.

Space -in an apartment, in the spare room will have a 2 ft by 4 foot space to put a grow tent that I found. This will be for the veggie lettuces and herbs. This is in line with the requirements on the go ahead of "must b, pretty, clean with little to no mess, guest room ready at a moments notice and as little maintenance as possible since our schedules are busy and I am out of town close to 50% of the time. I also have a another space right next to it in a corner that is also 4 feet wide where a built in desk is.this will be my micro greens and wheat grass station and will also house the dehydrator I am planning on getting.

So where to start...been researching hydro set ups and lights. Have a 4 ft metro shelf rack already. Got a 2 ft t5 fixture, a micro green and wheat grass kit coming in the mail as my first investment. Wanted to go with a 4 ft light but had limited funds from a bonus I got and tried to stretch it as far as possible. So could get the 2 ft and both kits or a 4 ft and a lesser version of one of the kits. Also since the greens and wheatgrass can use the ambient light from a sunny room they don't have to be directly under a light. Will eventually move to a 4 ft.

So been researching hydro set ups that are as automated as possible. They are a bit expensive. DIY is cheeper.

But found the kratky method and think I am going to work with this to start. Lettuces and tomatoes seem to do well with this method and little to no maintenance.

http://www.ctahr.haw...onic_method.pdf


so I was given a mint plant. Got some buckets net pots and pearlite and had some liquid fert left over from last summer and thought lets test this as a start.

any suggestions or comments welcome. I know we got some indoor masters here and will be looking for guideance as I move forward.
...so here I go...

Edited by PsyBearknot, 23 May 2013 - 10:12 AM.
Better link

[PsyBearknot]

http://www.ctahr.haw...onic_method.pdf

So the thought behind this is that the roots grow down into the water. The feeding roots continue to grow down as the water gets used by the plant and the level of the water drops. As the level of the water drops it creates a nice humid space for the root mass to grow. Fully automated no maintenance!

Heres what i did

got a 2 gallon bucket with lid. X 4

cut a 2.5 circle in the lid with a hole cutter attachment for my drill X 4

filled the net pot with pearlite and soaked in water X 4

filled the bucket with water and a liquid fert that I already had

put lid on top and net pot with pearlite in hole in bucket.

took cuttings off mint plant and inserted into the pearlite

placed on rack under t5 light and set timer for 16 on 8 off cycle.


Lessons learned / reasoning I did what I did

Used mint because it was given to me and its probably the easiest thing i have ever grown. Good for a test. I took cuttings and placed it in the pearlite thinking it will root for me there. all the exames ive seen start with a seedling or rooted cutting.

hole in the bucket - had to use knife to cut out larger hole to get the net pots down into the water. My net pots do not seem to have as much of the tapered bottom like in the examples I've seen. Easy to correct ill just by a larger hole cutting attachment for my drill next time.

Will move to a different nute solution it was a test so used what I had.

Will move to hydroton next cause I HATE dealing with pearlite. It's a mess. Messes do not fall under the guidelines I have been given for this venture. But again I had it and the places that have the hydroton were out.

This method is originally using a 4 leiter container for herbs and lettuce. I could only find 2 gallon with lids to fit so I used those.


Will update as I progress...

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Edited by PsyBearknot, 23 May 2013 - 10:14 AM.
Formatting

[PsyBearknot]

FYI updated the link to a better PDF that explains better what I'm following for the Kratky method

[PsyBearknot]

It's kinda funny situation going into a local hydro store. You always hear about people asking about growing weed or asking questions about growing with out saying weed but implying that. I don't think the guy really believed the fact I am really doing this for veggies and greens and not weed. His raised eyebrow action when he would emphsise the word "herbs" or "guys like you that are into growing herbs" and never would say veggies or tomatos when i asked questions Specifically about tomatos. Made me wonder if he was trying to get more info out of the situation.

On sure if I was in a state where it were legal I'd consider it. But that's truly not what this is for.

[PsyBearknot]

Herb n vegi seeds ordered
microgreens set up ordered
wheatgrass set up in hand will start in 2 weeks
added additional lights - led to list.
Found grow tent to and to wish list
also added Excalibur dehydrator to the list

current project is mint cuttings to test out a non circulating hydro method.

New additions - have a strip of rockwool cubes and decided to use several to test/play around with before I put the new seed into play. I had some catnip seed laying around. Like mint pretty much a weed so wanted to see what it would be to try and start the seed in the cubes. Also took cuttings of basil, stevia, lavender and rosemary to see if I can get roots to grow. Besides I need to maximize the space the light is shining on. Have the light on 16/8 right now but think gonna drop it to 12/12 since its just mint and some cuttings not tomatoes and peppers.

Is rockwool the best way to start seed for a hydro setup or is there a better way?

[roscoe]

Pulling up a chair, I'm interested in micro greens myself just havn't taken the plunge.

[PsyBearknot]

Pulling up a chair, I'm interested in micro greens myself just havn't taken the plunge.

How far are you looking to go with the micro greens? Just personal eats or looking to sell greens? What greens are you looking at running? DIY or getting some sort of kit set up?

[Il19z8rn4li1]

If those buckets are translucent... your going to have MAJOR algae issues.


whenver i use buckets, i always get OPAQUE ones, and paint just the LIDS white, or
line them with something white.


algae is a bitch in an environment that ISNT a FULL ecosystem.



Shit looks nice though :) Great write up man. ILl be sure to stop on back this thread
a few times.

[PsyBearknot]

Thx for the algie tip. Had plans to move to black buckets. You can see through these buckets. Not clear but can at least make out the water level on the bucket. Looks like ill just but the buckets for hydro set up instead of DIY. the savings declines quickly when you move to black buckets.

[PsyBearknot]

As a start I have a 2 ft long 2 bulb (both bulbs are grow/veg spectrum) T5 unit that will be on a hanger that moves up and down.

This will eventually be put in a 4 X 2 X 5 ft tent

I would like to upgrade or add to this unit.

Options - replace with 1 - 4ft / 4 bulb (3 grow/veg and 1 flower/bloom spectrum) t5 unit on hanger that moves up and down

or

keep 2 ft unit and add 2 - 90/100 w led panel/UFO, one on each side. Both led lights in full spectrum. Led lights stationary and 2ft t5 on moveable hanger

or

keep 2 ft unit and add 2 - 90/100 w led panel/UFO, one on each side. Both led lights in bloom/flower spectrum. Led lights stationary and 2ft t5 on moveable hanger.

Now I know that the tomato and peppers fruit based on age and not necessarily length of day so will keep light cycle on 12/12 or 16/8.

How much of a mix of spectrums do I need?

[opiwave668]

im confused so you want full automation or KISS method
you going cheap or expensive
kind of have a little of everything going

if i was to do indoor garden
full auto
make sure all my plants can use the same fert and ph range then go flood table gives you versatility and can go cheap or expensive ive seen people use those blue kiddie pools a pump couple fittings and now a massive hydroponic field per se

no maintenance
wick setup

led lighting
4 ft t5 8 bulb

fert
organic "tea"

i would paint the buckets opaque and go ahead and finish making them into aero setups you know you want to:teeth:


would love to see some hydro radishes

Edited by opiwave668, 31 May 2013 - 11:40 AM.

[PsyBearknot]

On the cheep as possible. Low maintenance and automated as possible. With the limited space I have.
The space I will have is 4 ft by 2 ft. The 8 bulb 4 ft t5's are too wide for that space.

Starting out KISS will move farther with time and budget to more automated.

[opiwave668]

if its exactly 48" it wont fit tthere needs to be room for the cord
were only talking a half inch or so
49"L x 26"W x 4.5"H can get brand new one with bulbs 225 shipped

taped it 24-24.5" in the dark lol
it will fit well the one i taped will anyways


just throwing ideas out you do what ever you want though

bus tote flood table on on top of full size tote rez's you could have two big ones in that space so you could run two different fert programs for different kinds of plants

something like this

[Direct Link]

or this

[Direct Link]

Edited by opiwave668, 31 May 2013 - 03:08 PM.

[PsyBearknot]

Def appreciate the input, Opi. Thanks for those links

[PsyBearknot]

Found a tent that fits my space.

Now i have 2 spaces to work with that are 2 x 4 x 5 ft.
One is an open set up in a cut out corner and the other is the tent.
Decided on a 4 ft 6 bulb t5 light for the tent.

The light makes the tent run a temp of 102. Managing the temps temporarly by turning off 4 of the bulbs, a feature of this light, and only running A 2 bulb set-up. Also running a fan to circulate the air. Will need to correct this temp issue when I get the tent full and running. But for now this will work.

All seeds that have been ordered have come in.
Tomato seeds ordered are haireloom determinant types that should get around 3-4 feet tall. One is a full sized black/purple. The other is a Roma type and an orange cherry size. orange in color good for sauce/paste and cooking applications. Found some tomato seeds called "micro toms". Supposed to be the smallest tomato vine around. Gets between 6-12 inches tall but fruits abundantly. I all start with these as my first attempt on the tomatoes since the seeds were cheep and I got more then the others per package.
2 types of peppers. 1 multi colored bell pepper size and a jalapeño.
Also got radish, lettuce - head and leaf, Pak Choy, and chard. Also got a variety pack of the basic herbs.

Ordered a micro green kit and a wheatgrass kit. Was planning on starting out with these and then move to cuttings of current growing outdoor herbs and starting seed but part of each kit was back ordered and part seems to be lost by fed x. The bummer part of it is that I don't have a full kit of either to start.

The plan of attack is -
tent set up will be 7-8 5 gallon buckets. Running 2 different tomatoes a pepper. 1 in each bucket. head lettuce, leaf lettuce, Pak Choy, and chard - 3 to a bucket. All DWC buckets. Looking into a non circulating method such as the Kratky method posted above.

Open set up
8 - 10 3.5 gallon buckets running my herbs and one or 2 of the micro toms. I am looking into a type of DWC re circulating bucket set up that the "numeric" turned me on to in a link from another thread that Big Toke @ icg mag has titled bio-buckets. My hope with this set up is that it will be able to continually run several herb plants at once in different stages of growth. For example 1 bucket will have space for 3 herb plants like basil. 1 is harvest ready, one is pre harvest, and one new rooted cutting replacing each with a newer plant as one gets harvested. The thought being the roots will not be in standing liquid. So with the nutrient solution getting pumped over the roots then draining I would think this would allow plants to develop and grow to maturity that are all at different rates of growth.

Water chemistry link -
https://www.icmag.co...ead.php?t=23357

bio-bucket info
https://www.icmag.co...read.php?t=8182
https://www.icmag.co...read.php?t=5816

Updates on current pprojects.
Kratky method mint test - this was several mint cuttings I took and was atempting to root and grow based on this non circulating method. Some of the cuttings dried up but 2 started to grow roots. But concern of algee in the white buckets and
all of the basil and other cuttings survived in the rockwool and have started producing their roots. So I decided to scrap the mint test. I had a coupe of airstones, tubing and a pump from trying to automate a mushie grow. So I modified my current buckets and replaced all the mint with the other rooted cutting.

In reading I have found that the rockwool cubs will change the ph of your water. So for starting my new seed I went with oasis cubes.

World seed supply had an offer on a full sun coffee plant seeds that had already been popped and waiting to be planted. So I ordered some of those. They included some of the may seed of the month - milk thistle. I had enough of the rockwool cubes left so I put the coffee plant seeds and some of the milk thistle into a tray and covered and have placed this in my "seed starting" area. The coffee plants will go into soil since the most of them will be for gifts to others.

Kinda all over the board on different things used and methods used. Mostly because to test and play I am using stuff left over from other hobbys/projects. But there is a more clear path of where I'm looking to take this.

Till then...

pic
back row
3 basil, 3 basil, catnip, and lavender
front row
Stevia, catnip, mint, basil

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Edited by PsyBearknot, 16 June 2013 - 04:13 PM.
Added bio buck and water chemistry links

[PsyBearknot]

Finally got my micro greens kit.
Gonna start out with sunflower micros

placed a pre measured bag of sunflower seeds in a bowl with cold water for a 12 hour soak.

Rinced 2 times a day for next 3 days

put included soil in the included plastic tray and hyhydrated

covered with another tray per instructions and will water 1 time a day for the next 3 days with lid on. The. Will uncover and continue to water 1 x a day to day 10 will be harvest day!

stay tuned....

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[Il19z8rn4li1]

YUMMY!!!

[PsyBearknot]

Pre measured wheat berries were soaked in cold water for 12 hours.

In tray 1 inch of soil with azomite as fert was watered in and wheat berries laid on top.

Another tray put over top for 3-4 days with another 6-7 days uncovered growth till harvest.

Mist in morning and water at night...

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[PsyBearknot]

The kit I got was soil based AND hydro. Some micros like the sunflower like soil. Others prefer the hydro method

just a black plastic tray and a hygro sure-to-grow pad and water

this is a tray divided in half with a spicy salad green mix and basil

stay tuned...

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[PsyBearknot]

Swaped out the white buckets with black buckets

planted my seeds now the wait begins

the goal will be 4 runs over a year with each run being 90 days. Longest plant to maturity is the black heirloom tomato at 88 days
1 bell pepper
1 jalapeño
1 black heirloom tomato
1 golden nugget cherry heirloom tomato
3 red chard (2 sets of plants each run)
3 Pak Choy (2 sets of plants each run)
3 micro Tom tomatoes (smallest tomato plant at 1-1 1/2 tall with red cherry fruits

I chose the type of plants I did based on height of plant and days of maturity to space out my harvests instead of one Big Bang of a harvest.

Char and Pak Choy first
jalops and golden nuggets next
micro toms
2nd round harvest of Pak Choy and chard
finally black heirloom tomato and bell peppers

And it begins...

wish me luck and send me vibes. I gotta make this work out or the hubby's gonna be pissed (went a little bigger and a bit more over budget than I was supposed to LOL!)