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.

“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)