Sher
AGA Farmer
Posts: 7,025
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Post by Sher on Nov 30, 2020 8:15:16 GMT -5
Welcome to AeroGarden Addicts! Hello, I am writing for our Administrator, Shawn . She has been an AeroGardener since February 2016, and quickly got addicted. She owns several different models totaling over a dozen units (at last count). She especially enjoys growing Peppers, Herbs and Flowers. She says:
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Sher
AGA Farmer
Posts: 7,025
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Post by Sher on Nov 30, 2020 9:19:35 GMT -5
On behalf of our Administrator, Shawn , I would like to welcome all of our newest members: pamowes , thumbmn , finioacerbus , johnnykethes , feinbergbr , metdude , der , sherpagirl , reemas , cdampy , felicity , Gardener75 , fei , al3b , doccoz , sunny We are so happy that you joined us! Please share your Aerogarden projects and experience with us. We would love to see what you are growing this winter!
And if you are a newbie, please share your Aerogarden dreams with us! Ask questions, and we will do our best to answer you. |
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Post by doccoz on Nov 30, 2020 18:33:21 GMT -5
Hi all, I got my first AG Harvest a few weeks ago from Amazon UK. After cropping gorgeous herbs for a week I then bought 2 vegebox copies from Aldi (Ambiano brand) for growing lettuce. The reservoir is quite shallow, and there is no pump or aeration so these are not great really. I think its basically Kratky method with a built in Led grow light. I'm desparate to grow winter tomatoes (I'm an avid greenhouse grower in Summer), so I've just got another AG Harvest for that. That's it though, no more! Really hard to get AG accessories in the UK. Currently getting ready to transfer red Robin tomatoes x2, sprouted in sponge under the Aldi grow lights, into the new harvest. I dissected the baskets from 2 of the new herb kit starters for the tomatoes. I'd love to hear from any other UK growers about seed and accessory suppliers. Thanks for the welcome!
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campingcorgis
AGA Farmer
🌴 I wet my plants. :-) 🌴
Posts: 3,114
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Post by campingcorgis on Nov 30, 2020 18:39:23 GMT -5
Okay...here's my question...hope it isn't too silly.  Our house is "open concept," meaning, our kitchen, dining and living space are all open to each other. I have my AG Bounty set up on a counter in the kitchen area, but the light illuminates the entire "great room," if you will. It is bright! The original settings had it turning on at 8AM and off at 11PM. In order to get a little less light for evenings, I've switched it to come on at 11PM and off a 2PM. So, it still gets the full 15 hours of light. Is that okay or is there something I'm missing? Don't want to raise a bunch of confused herbs...LOL.  Thanks for any input. |
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Shawn
Administrator
Posts: 16,266 
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Post by Shawn on Dec 1, 2020 4:30:20 GMT -5
Okay...here's my question...hope it isn't too silly.  Our house is "open concept," meaning, our kitchen, dining and living space are all open to each other. I have my AG Bounty set up on a counter in the kitchen area, but the light illuminates the entire "great room," if you will. It is bright! The original settings had it turning on at 8AM and off at 11PM. In order to get a little less light for evenings, I've switched it to come on at 11PM and off a 2PM. So, it still gets the full 15 hours of light. Is that okay or is there something I'm missing? Don't want to raise a bunch of confused herbs...LOL. Thanks for any input.
I also have an open layout in my house. Same areas as well as yours. I have an AG on my counter as well as a wall in the "living" area (but it looks in place for some reason LOL)
Anyway, I have mine set to go on at 5am and off at 8 or 9pm. And with that I made a "shield" of sorts to place in front of the counter unit at night to block the lights. I used that for years then I just decided that if these were outside, they would not be getting the light they wanted anyway I choose to just turn the lights off at whatever time I want them off. Are they getting the full 15 hours, no but they grow perfectly fine all the same.
There is nothing wrong with the hours you set but plants still need some darkness and if lights go off at 2pm .. is the area dark enough or is there always light there? Just a thought.
As for my Farm, I have a curtain in front I can open or close accordingly for light. I found a magnetic rod with a really nice lain black curtain for the front and back. However I am liking an idea I saw here on the forum I may try very soon.
I hope that helps some.
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Shawn
Administrator
Posts: 16,266
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Post by Shawn on Dec 1, 2020 4:33:06 GMT -5
Hi all, I got my first AG Harvest a few weeks ago from Amazon UK. After cropping gorgeous herbs for a week I then bought 2 vegebox copies from Aldi (Ambiano brand) for growing lettuce. The reservoir is quite shallow, and there is no pump or aeration so these are not great really. I think its basically Kratky method with a built in Led grow light. I'm desparate to grow winter tomatoes (I'm an avid greenhouse grower in Summer), so I've just got another AG Harvest for that. That's it though, no more! Really hard to get AG accessories in the UK. Currently getting ready to transfer red Robin tomatoes x2, sprouted in sponge under the Aldi grow lights, into the new harvest. I dissected the baskets from 2 of the new herb kit starters for the tomatoes. I'd love to hear from any other UK growers about seed and accessory suppliers. Thanks for the welcome!
Hello and welcome doccoz. Are there no seed vendors in the UK you can purchase regular seeds from if you can not get AG pods? Have you tried Amazon?
Also remember you can reuse the plastic cages, domes and paper labels, unless they get ruined from project like peppers etc. I wast throw mine in the dishwasher to clean.
Hopefully someone from the UK will be able to answer more for you.
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campingcorgis
AGA Farmer
🌴 I wet my plants. :-) 🌴
Posts: 3,114
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Post by campingcorgis on Dec 1, 2020 12:05:37 GMT -5
I also have an open layout in my house. Same areas as well as yours. I have an AG on my counter as well as a wall in the "living" area (but it looks in place for some reason LOL)
Anyway, I have mine set to go on at 5am and off at 8 or 9pm. And with that I made a "shield" of sorts to place in front of the counter unit at night to block the lights. I used that for years then I just decided that if these were outside, they would not be getting the light they wanted anyway I choose to just turn the lights off at whatever time I want them off. Are they getting the full 15 hours, no but they grow perfectly fine all the same.
There is nothing wrong with the hours you set but plants still need some darkness and if lights go off at 2pm .. is the area dark enough or is there always light there? Just a thought.
As for my Farm, I have a curtain in front I can open or close accordingly for light. I found a magnetic rod with a really nice lain black curtain for the front and back. However I am liking an idea I saw here on the forum I may try very soon.
I hope that helps some.
Thank you so much! This is very helpful, indeed! Although at this time of the year, there isn't much light coming into the house, unless we turn on lights, but I think I'll go for timing similar to yours. This morning, for some reason, the garden is offline & won't connect to wi fi. Sigh. May need to reboot our modem or something. Sigh.  Thanks again for the help! Ginny |
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campingcorgis
AGA Farmer
🌴 I wet my plants. :-) 🌴
Posts: 3,114
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Post by campingcorgis on Dec 2, 2020 12:56:37 GMT -5
I looked around the house for a box or something I might use to create a shield. When I didn't find a suitable item, I decided to "borrow" a windshield sun screen from my car. Not really using that in the car, at this time of the year, so it won't be missed. It works very well! I'll keep an eye out for a "sale" on sun screens to the Bounty can have its own. So now I have the lights set to come on at 4AM, I'll use the shade as needed, or just switch them off in the evening. Thanks for the idea! Ginny |
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cbear
AGA Sprout
Posts: 4
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Post by cbear on Dec 2, 2020 15:02:03 GMT -5
Just wanted to say Hi. I'm pretty new to all this. Looking forward to learning.
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Shawn
Administrator
Posts: 16,266
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Post by Shawn on Dec 2, 2020 15:30:01 GMT -5
Just wanted to say Hi. I'm pretty new to all this. Looking forward to learning.
Welcome cbear. We are happy you have joined us. What machine do you have? What are you growing? Please ask any questions you have. Take a look around the forum, we have a wealth of information here.
Looking forward to hearing on how your garden grows.
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anita
AGA Sprout
Posts: 1
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Post by anita on Dec 2, 2020 18:24:23 GMT -5
Hi. I am new. My brother has AG and I bought a 6 pod unit to grow lettuce. Wish me luck!
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cbear
AGA Sprout
Posts: 4
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Post by cbear on Dec 3, 2020 6:17:13 GMT -5
Just wanted to say Hi. I'm pretty new to all this. Looking forward to learning.
Welcome cbear. We are happy you have joined us. What machine do you have? What are you growing? Please ask any questions you have. Take a look around the forum, we have a wealth of information here.
Looking forward to hearing on how your garden grows.
I currently have to harvest units in operation. One is growing herbs the other lettuce. Currently waiting on my delivery of another harvest, Bounty elite and sprout!!! I'm hooked if you can't tell. |
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Post by clumsythumbs on Dec 3, 2020 8:57:43 GMT -5
Welcome cbear . We are happy you have joined us. What machine do you have? What are you growing? Please ask any questions you have. Take a look around the forum, we have a wealth of information here.
Looking forward to hearing on how your garden grows.
I currently have to harvest units in operation. One is growing herbs the other lettuce. Currently waiting on my delivery of another harvest, Bounty elite and sprout!!! I'm hooked if you can't tell. You are in good company, cbear! The "addicts" in the title is really quite accurate for most of us. Welcome! |
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Post by clumsythumbs on Dec 3, 2020 9:03:48 GMT -5
Okay...here's my question...hope it isn't too silly.  Our house is "open concept," meaning, our kitchen, dining and living space are all open to each other. I have my AG Bounty set up on a counter in the kitchen area, but the light illuminates the entire "great room," if you will. It is bright! The original settings had it turning on at 8AM and off at 11PM. In order to get a little less light for evenings, I've switched it to come on at 11PM and off a 2PM. So, it still gets the full 15 hours of light. Is that okay or is there something I'm missing? Don't want to raise a bunch of confused herbs...LOL. Thanks for any input. Hi campingcorgis, to echo what Shawn said.... the time the lights on/off does not matter. I have a few friends who casually AG and they do the same. The plants do need some dark/shade time, but unless it is in direct contact with a window I think it is fine. A year or so back, I had people staying with me and due to their schedules, had my AGs (which were in my living room/dining room area) to go on/off at similar times as you have and it worked fine. So, I would not worry. You need to do what works for you and your setup! The way I see it, AGs and hydro/aero ponics is using technology to amend the problems of natural conditions outside. Gardening indoors is like when they invented irrigation-- previous environments that were impossible to grow are now possible, so no need to conform to "natural" rhythms of light/dark...do what works for YOU! haha...Welcome to the site! |
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Shawn
Administrator
Posts: 16,266
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Post by Shawn on Dec 3, 2020 10:25:59 GMT -5
Hi. I am new. My brother has AG and I bought a 6 pod unit to grow lettuce. Wish me luck!
Welcome anita, Lettuce grows nice and pretty fast so you should enjoy it soon. Please take a moment to read thru the forum for some tips and hints. Also ask any questions you may have. |
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campingcorgis
AGA Farmer
🌴 I wet my plants. :-) 🌴
Posts: 3,114
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Post by campingcorgis on Dec 3, 2020 12:07:02 GMT -5
<<Okay...here's my question...hope it isn't too silly. >> <<Gardening indoors is like when they invented irrigation-- previous environments that were impossible to grow are now possible, so no need to conform to "natural" rhythms of light/dark...do what works for YOU! haha...Welcome to the site!>> Thank you clumsythumbs for the input and the welcome too! Being able to have an indoor garden is a blessing! I can't wait to start enjoying my fresh grown herbs. With the added benefit of not having to endure pain from kneeling. Can't beat that.  |
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campingcorgis
AGA Farmer
🌴 I wet my plants. :-) 🌴
Posts: 3,114
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Post by campingcorgis on Dec 3, 2020 14:19:47 GMT -5
My Bounty Elite has really taken off. It is planted with the "herb garden" that was supplied with it. This morning, I noticed that the dill plant has a real "dill" leaf! That caused a closer inspection of the other plants & I can see that the 3 basil plants all have teeny, tiny real basil leaves too. Chives isn't looking too "chivey" yet...thyme and Italian parsley still have their domes on. Curly parsley and mint haven't done anything. No worries though, if something wasn't going to grow, those would have been my choices to sacrifice! The anticipation is growing! About 10 days into the grow, Bounty disconnected from wifi and simply refused to get back online. I tried repeatedly thru the day and the next. I sent an email to AG and awaited their help. On the 3rd day, I tried again and it connected, first try. Finally heard back from AG, but all they had was a list of questions, no help. I answered the questions and await another reply. Not holding my breath, since I told them it was now hooked up. I ordered a simplified, single ban 2.4Ghz wifi extender and it arrives on Saturday. I plan to make it a dedicated AG hook up and hope that solves any future issues. I hope to be successful and add to my "garden" with additional machines...so, fingers crossed. And, yes, I understand that it works without wifi, but I paid for it, so figure it really SHOULD work.  |
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Post by clumsythumbs on Dec 3, 2020 18:39:14 GMT -5
My Bounty Elite has really taken off. It is planted with the "herb garden" that was supplied with it. This morning, I noticed that the dill plant has a real "dill" leaf! That caused a closer inspection of the other plants & I can see that the 3 basil plants all have teeny, tiny real basil leaves too. Chives isn't looking too "chivey" yet...thyme and Italian parsley still have their domes on. Curly parsley and mint haven't done anything. No worries though, if something wasn't going to grow, those would have been my choices to sacrifice! The anticipation is growing! About 10 days into the grow, Bounty disconnected from wifi and simply refused to get back online. I tried repeatedly thru the day and the next. I sent an email to AG and awaited their help. On the 3rd day, I tried again and it connected, first try. Finally heard back from AG, but all they had was a list of questions, no help. I answered the questions and await another reply. Not holding my breath, since I told them it was now hooked up. I ordered a simplified, single ban 2.4Ghz wifi extender and it arrives on Saturday. I plan to make it a dedicated AG hook up and hope that solves any future issues. I hope to be successful and add to my "garden" with additional machines...so, fingers crossed. And, yes, I understand that it works without wifi, but I paid for it, so figure it really SHOULD work.  Congrats on the seedlings! That is really frustrating about the wifi... I have just old style Bounty (and Ultra) so no wifi. I agree, if you paid for it, it should work! Hope the extender helps. |
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Shawn
Administrator
Posts: 16,266
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Post by Shawn on Dec 5, 2020 8:51:56 GMT -5
I would like to welcome our newest members to the forum: oldcheese9 , kll , johnnieb , wmill3 , rittel , pilip , mgny518 , niexist , smarmstrong , erikson2992 xriva , cbear , anita , duncwood , eirocitizen , tyrannosaura , thelifeof , donald , kihokiho , tim32073 , pipermcgee , vicki , sagroc , thenextvinnie , gmu26 , love2grow , jan63 , Nyhtengale , sevigne , anniejill , lordreptilicus , anniesheppard , bigpuddin , phillipkent , rinsk , marc , weerdoez , maskedsonnet , sirgoodsmoke , cloudshaper , go2vegas , jpack and kol . So how many of you are just getting started Aerogardening and how many have been at it for a while? What are you all growing and how are you enjoying your machines? We would love to hear from you whether it be any questions you have or tips to share with others. Or just post about the gardens you have. We look forward to hearing from you so why not grab a  and some  , settle in and join us in all the conversations. |
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maskedsonnet
AGA Farmer
Without the burden of comparison, everything is beautiful
Posts: 1,607
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Post by maskedsonnet on Dec 5, 2020 16:43:14 GMT -5
Hi there, and thanks for the welcome! I've got 2 farms (1 Classic and 1 XL), a Harvest 360, and a Sprout! Got a Sprout about a year and a half ago and kinda fell down a rabbit hole. The Harvest I really only use to start seeds for my outdoor garden. Sprout I tend to rotate things through as I get bored and the notion strikes me, I have so many potted plants now. Quarantine has not been kind to me space-wise but very kind to me potted-plant wise. I'm quickly running out of shelf-space lol. Right now I'm trying to start some lemon balm in it, just to see if I can sprout it from seed. The lemon balm pods I've received from Aerogarden NEVER sprout, and I got tired for asking for replacements that also never come up, so trying out some of my own seeds and grow-anything sponges to see if it'll take off. I looooove lemon balm, so will be super excited if comes up!! The farms I'm using for peppers, which I adore. The classic is a very recent purchase, I got it a few weeks ago with the stacking kit and really like how the setup looks. My XL currently has 2 Jalapeno plants, a Habanero, a poblano, a banana, and a bell pepper plant. For my Classic I decided to try out peppers I've never grown before and put in 1 each of Brazilian Starfish, Tabasco, Aji Charapita, Filius blue, Chinese Five Color, Chiltepin Wild Chile, Jigsaw, and Biquinho. I'm sure I'll be looking for pruning tips if they all come up, since it's pretty limited on vertical space!! Sorry for the ramble, I'm super excited to have found this place, I've fallen in love with Aerogarden and look forward to exploring the forum! |
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Thanks again for the help!
