Category Archives: Indoor Vegetables

January Kratky Hydroponic Lettuce Update

Indoor Vegetables, Kratky Method

The Kratky hydroponic lettuce experiments are moving along just fine! On the right side of the photo we can see the earliest batch is progressing as planned. Note the beautifully white root system developing in the nutrient rich water, along with the air gap that is forming as the liquid evaporates or is consumed by the young lettuce plant.

You can see the rest of the lettuce plants started from seed at the same time as the plant where we show the root system, and compare the leaf growth relative to the younger lettuce plants started from seed on 1/13/19. The different in growth over those extra couple of weeks is notable.

What if we could just start a half dozen lettuce plants from seed every couple of weeks and have an endless supply of low-work, low-maintenance lettuce for personal consumption? I think we can!

Easy Salads

Kratky Lettuce Set-Up 2019

Indoor Vegetables, Kratky Method

Can I really have a steady supply of fresh lettuce with minimal work and very minimal maintenance? I hope so! What’s the idea? Kratky!! This is a form of hydroponics that doesn’t require water movement or an air-stone. This is reputed to be a “set it and forget it” system. What did I do to get this set up?

First, I planted some lettuce seeds into rockwool. Seeds are super cheap, probably less than a penny per seed at the most. And the rockwool is reasonably priced, too, and can get shipped right to your home with Amazon pretty easily. Soak the rockwool until it is saturated, drop a seed or two into the hole in the rockwool, keep it wet with easy bottom watering and wait until you have a nice looking seedling.

Next we mix up the nutrient mixture. I just mixed up one gallon of nutrient solution which is made with one gallon of water (lettuce is pretty forgiving, but ideally we want the pH of the water to be below 7), 1 gram of Epsom Salts, 2 grams of 4-18-28 fertilizer, and 2 grams of 15.5-0-0 Calcium Nitrate. Yes I felt very odd measuring out grams of white powder on a food scale, but this is how we do it.

Next I set a net-cup into a mason jar, or I like to repurpose my glass peanut butter jars (don’t eat the peanut butter that has all that sugar in it that comes in plastic containers … peanut butter should have two ingredients, peanuts and salt). Pour the nutrient solution so it fills the container to a level that is just 1/4″-1/2″ above the bottom of the net-cup. Then we take a section of the rockwool that has the seedling in it and hold it in the net-cup while filling in the cup with hydroponic clay pebbles like you see below.

Lastly, we wrap the jar in tinfoil or a paper sleeve to keep the light out of the water. We don’t want algae growing in there using up the oxygen for the lettuce. We set those jars under a grow light and wait the 4-6 weeks to get a full lettuce plant. Sure, we may want to peek in on the kratky set-up to see how the roots are developing and such, but all-in-all this is supposed to be a hands off grow method.




Isaiah 43:18-19 ESV

“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Taking the Swiss Chard out of the Aquaponic Bed

Aquaponics, Indoor Vegetables

This swiss chard plant was a huge success.  There have been many pounds worth of swiss chard harvested from here.  Unfortunately our earthworms were the main benefactor as we found we didn’t eat it often enough to keep it in the aquaponic grow bed.  Also unfortunately, our two year old oscar fish who was powering our aquaponic grow beds with nutrients died a while back, and Crackle, the replacement fish is still quite small.  We have a green pepper plant that is starting to bare fruit, but the leaves are yellowing which is most likely from lack of nutrients.  Therefore these two main factors made me reach the conclusion that this mature swiss chard plant must come out.

Can you believe the size of this stalk/root system?!

Swiss Chard Root

Breakfast for Clare

Chickens, Indoor Vegetables, Microgreens

This is what I whipped up at Clare’s request for breakfast.  Two farm fresh eggs, a bit of water and several small pieces of cream cheese make the base of the omelette.  A strip of cooked bacon cut up, two home grown cherry tomatoes diced up, a bit of sunflower microgreens minced up and shredded mild cheddar cheese comprise the filling.  Topped with another sprinkle of shredded cheddar, a bit of radish microgreens and two more homegrown cherry tomatoes and there was enough to not only feed Clare, but also enough to feed her twin sister as well.

Farm Fresh Omelette

Testing the New Ebb and Flow Microgreens Bed

Indoor Vegetables, Microgreens

I’m not going to lie.  I’m quite nervous and excited about this test.  Four trays were seeded and stacked in darkness late on Monday.  I was hoping they would be a bit further along before Friday when I placed them into the 4’x4′ ebb and flow grow bed for the automation testing.

Under two of the trays I have coconut coir mats and two of the trays I decided to place in the bed without the mats underneath.  I’m hoping the coconut coir mats will act as a filter so preventing the majority of particulate mater from draining out through the water pump when the flood cycle is completed.  Perhaps I should have washed the mats prior to placing them into the grow bed as these mats, when dry, seem to shed some debris.  I’m also concerned with taking the water level too high on the flood cycle thinking a higher water level might induce more debris to fall from the small holes in the bottom of the trays.

Testing the 4'x4' ebb and flow bed for microgreens

The organic gardening soil might retain moisture better than standard hydroponic grow mediums, so I will certainly need to be observing this system closely an make adjustments.  The goal of this system is to keep the microgreen growing process going even if I am unable, or unwilling, to tend to them for a few days (like being able to not go into the office on the weekends).  Wish me luck!

James 1:2-3
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

 

Rockwool … It’s a Great Start

Aquaponics, Indoor Vegetables

The lettuce floating in the DWC desktop aquaponic bed has run its course, and in typical fashion I have not already started the plants that I want to replace them.  Perhaps I’ll consider some kale and swiss chard I have on the side as a temporary replacement until new lettuce is ready.

I’m coming to like this rockwool material for starting seeds.  Especially for the aqauponic growbeds.  I’m still experimenting with taking a seedling started in rockwool and seeing how well it transplants into a soil medium.  But for the aquaponic bed, this is my favorite way to start seeds, hands down.

Step one, seen here pictured below, it to soak the rockwool material.  I like to get a healthy scoop of fishwater from the fish tank into a re-used plastic food container and then drop in the rockwool, let it soak up the water, and rotate the rockwool pieces to get a more even saturation.

Step two, drop one to three seeds into the small hole in the center of the individual rockwool cubes.  Why do I say one to three?  It depends on your seeds germination rate and how certain you want to get a viable seedling going in each rockwool cube.  If several seedlings pop up, you can snip off the weaker looking ones with scissors and just keep the best looking one.

Step three, keep the plastic tray holding the rockwool cubes in a warm space and make sure it is under appropriate light once the seeds have germinated.

Step four, just make sure there is always some water in the bottom of the plastic tray and the water will simply wick up into the rockwool material giving your seed an optimal moisture environment for growth.

rockwool cubes set to soak

“No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and puts it on an old garment; otherwise he will both tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.”
—Luke 5:36-38 (NASB)

Ebb and Flow Watering System for Microgreens

Indoor Vegetables, Microgreens

So far so good on the installation of a 4′ x 4′ ebb and flow growbed at the office!  Next project will be to get the LED light panel installed over it and then get some microgreens growing!

What you see below is the the business are of this ebb and flow growbed.  One of the fixtures is for the water to pump into the growbed from the water reservoir below.  The other fixture is the overflow which will prevent catastrophic flooding should the water pump stay running in a malfunction.  We’ll get the timing dialed in when we are actually growing microgreens in here, but the pump runs for 3-5 minutes 2x per day, and that should keep these little delicious plants hydrated during its growing cycle.

At full capacity, we should be able to harvest up to 8 trays per week from this system!  For the first part of the growing cycle, the seeded trays sit covered in the dark.  On the following Monday, I plan to transfer the trays that were in the dark into this automated growbed.  The hope is by Friday we will be able to harvest and distribute over the weekend.  The best laid plans of mice and men … we shall see how this vision culminates.

ebb and flow microgreen grow bed

Vine Ripened Indoor Cherry Tomatoes!

Indoor Vegetables

Now we are finally getting to the pay-off.  Three cherry tomato plants, started from seed months ago, are finally experiencing the full ripening of its fruit under LED lights.  These are definitely not the watery orbs shipped in from Mexico and purchasable in local grocery stores.  These babies are small but full of flavor.

I was tricked before when I pulled one and a half cucumbers from my indoor trellis, only to have the plants’ roots rot (most likely due to colder temperatures, even indoors) and quit producing.  As the tomatoes are in a better location indoors and housed in a grow tent, my hopes are higher for future tomatoes!

On a side note … Allison, I didn’t have these at home for Paul’s sandwiches (may have only had enough here for one or two anyway) as these were at my office location, or Paul would be enjoying them today.  The good news for my girls is they can have at ’em !!  Perhaps next time.

ripe cherry tomatoes

Jalapenos Down!

Aquaponics, Indoor Vegetables

Do you want a free jalapeno pepper plant?  Act fast!  I’ve pulled our jalapeno pepper plant from our desktop aquaponic grow bed to make room for some spring onions and green peppers.  Contact me ASAP if you would like to be the adoptive parent of this fine jalapeno plant.  No background check will be required so long as you promise to care for it better than I have, which will be easy.

jalapenos down

Ecclesiastes 3 King James Version (KJV)

3 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: