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    Beginners

    This category contains 23 posts

    Catnip seed collecting

    The catnip is dry, and the seeds are ready to be collected.
    If you haven’t been following along, you might want to take a look at where they started.

    The flower clusters have been collected and dried. At this point it is suitable for storage, enjoyed by kitties, or in this case, seed collecting.
    If you look at [...]

    Beginners’ Corner: Can I Grow In Here?

    I’ve asked myself this question countless times. Walking around a new property I hear the little voice inside my head weighing up each room, every nook and cranny, all with a view towards potential veg production. “Can I grow in here?” “How about in here?” “What about up there?” Yeah, I know, I sound like [...]

    Cuttings – Top 20 Tips

    1.     Temperature – try to keep the propagator temperature above 64°F (18°C,) but don’t let it exceed 75°F (24C°).
    2.     Humidity – keep the vents on your propagator closed to keep the humidity above 90%. Once the cuttings have produced roots open the vents to lower humidity and encourage transpiration.
    3.     Water – over saturated growing media [...]

    The Tao of Taking Aeroponic Cuttings

    The most successful and productive indoor gardeners all have one thing in common—they love cuttings! Talk to any serious grower and you’ll hear the same story. Consistently high quality and regular crops depend on a steady flow of healthy, vigorous cuttings. So it makes sense to give cuttings the best start in life possible. Too often when we visit indoor gardens we find trays of neglected cuttings, just managing to survive, relegated to a shelf in a dusty corner of the veg room. That just ain’t right! Merely keeping cuttings alive is not the aim of the game. Think of it like this … if we cause our new recruits undue stress when they are still young, fresh and fragile, it’s the botanical equivalent of dropping our babies down the stairs! Ouch! Even if they survive, they could be traumatized for the rest of their lives!

    Pond Hydroponics

    Spring is in the air, it’s a beautiful day, let’s take some of our experiments outdoors.

    Just outside of La Mancha is a little pond…

    I know that there are plenty of nutrients in the water. I can tell this by the following observations:

    There are plenty of fish in the pond, and plant nutrients are a known [...]

    Tomatoes in Rockwool

    Rockwool is a mainstay of commercial hydroponic growers – and for good reason. It takes up a minimal footprint and, when used correctly, yields like crazy. We asked Dr Lynette Morgan, a world authority on hydroponic vegetable production, to give us some expert advice on growing tomatoes in rockwool. There’s LOTS to be learned here as Dr Morgan takes us through how to develop irrigation strategies for your particular growing environment.

    First Look: NFT Gro-Tanks

    Compact. Self contained. Inexpensive. Easy to set up. Virtually no growth media required. No need to dial in complex irrigation schedules. Total control over a hyper-oxygenated, thriving root zone. Our main man with a high yielding plan, Everest Fernandez, takes a first look at NFT Gro-Tanks and shares some of his hands-on experience.

    Oyster Mushrooms

    Following on from learning about mushroom spores in our last issue, our resident mycologist, John Robinson, introduces us to the rich and varied Oyster mushroom. Perfect for beginners, this fungi beast produces some of the best yields in the world of cultivated fungi. Bring it on!!

    Grow Your Own Strawberries

    Hydro heads will also be delighted to know that strawberries love hydroponics and you can harvest mouthwatering fruit all year long. You can harvest your own huge “Junebearing” strawberries all year. Fresh strawberries consistently ready to pick? About now you’re poised on the edge of your seat waiting to know more, right? Read on!

    Salad 365: How To Build Your Own Lettuce Raft System

    Beat the winter blues this year by creating your very own salad factory that can run 365 days a year! Keith Roberto, author of “How To Hydroponics,” takes us through the process step-by-step.