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Post by scarfguy on Mar 16, 2024 18:53:20 GMT -5
SO... I don't think an aerovoir will help much with my giant melon vine.
This brings a whole new meaning to "topping off"
Now that it's grown up, it's taking one and a half gallons of water twice a day to "top off"
With all the transpiration from the leaves, it's like a giant humidifier!  |
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pfunnyjoy
AGA Bounty
Made more grow room in my office!
Posts: 782 
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Post by pfunnyjoy on Mar 16, 2024 23:50:21 GMT -5
Holy moly! That's a lot of watering! And I woke up this AM, went down to turn the fan on in the basement, immediately filled a gallon jug, pH adjusted it and set to watering. Between 3 gardens, that jug was gone.
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Post by scarfguy on Apr 9, 2024 17:03:53 GMT -5
CLOSING THE BOOK ON THIS MELON CROP...
Today I cut off the first and largest melon. It wasn't a 15 lb melon as promised but it was a whopping 7 pounds!
I had hoped that giving a larger plant more root space by using a DWC bucket would produce a few more melons but that was not the case. This plant only produced 2 melons no matter how many flowers I pollinated. All of these 10 foot vines were required to produce just 2 (albeit large) melons. The second one is still green but should ripen in a week or two.
I agonized as to whether this melon was ripe. Unlike a cantaloupe, the musk melon does not fall off of the vine when ripe. You have to guess. I waited til it started to turn yellow but it still had quite a bit of green.
As it turned out, I let it go a little bit too long! It's rather mushy and juicy but it still has a great taste with no hint of being on the "overripe" side.
NEXT ROUND... I'm gonna go back to the small patio melons like the Minnesota Midget that I started with. I'm gonna use the DWC bucket and see if I can get a plant that is more productive. I would like to get 4 or 5 melons on a single plant.
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Post by LoveSalads on Apr 9, 2024 17:16:57 GMT -5
That's a monster melon for an indoor grow @scarfguy. Looks wonderful and glad it tasted as good as it looked. Really creative way to grow indoor melons.
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Post by lynnee on Apr 9, 2024 19:30:35 GMT -5
Sounds like a plan for the Midgets, scarfguy!  |
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Post by agnoob on Aug 9, 2024 22:21:15 GMT -5
I’ve been inspired by scarfguy to start a mini cantaloupe in a Farm. I just planted a sugar cube mini cantaloupe about 3 weeks ago. I’ve read through all the posts in this thread to come up with a set up in my basement that would hopefully work.(Thsnks Scarfguy for sharing your melon wisdom!!) I hooked up the Farm to two 7-gallon reservoirs. I set up three grid panels in the back as the trellis so that when the the plant set fruit, I can just add some hanging baskets to hold them. I’ve clipped five pairs of grow lights on the grid panels hoping that’ll be enough light for the plant. And I have the dehumidifier going 24/7 to prevent any powdery mildew. Fingers crossed this will work!  imgur.com/a/v1YwOis |
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 10, 2024 8:25:59 GMT -5
Your setup looks really good agnoob. What is that vent on the wall behind the farm? Is that heat? Depending on your location, that may be an issue as fall ensues.
2 general words of widsom:
1. pollination is difficult! Only a small percentage (15-20% maybe) are successful. I haven't mastered it. Don't get discouraged. Also, sometimes one will start to develop and suddenly wilt. Very depressing.
2. Don't be afraid to prune, prune, prune. Don't worry about the plant, the vines are very aggressive. Shape the plant so that it is easiest to manage and conforms to your setup. Also, if you have a choice as to which flowers to pollinate, consider pollinating first the ones that are in a location that will be easy for you to support a heavy fruit if you get successful. Figuring out how to support the fruit has been a challenge.
====
I also have started a mini sugar cube. The description looked like it might be a good choice for AG farming.
Here's mine. I have just one plant in a bounty to maximize root space. I think a bounty will easily hold one plant. I'm already having to water twice a day. I haven't decided if I want to add a couple of aerovoir or not.
To the right of the cantaloupe is a bush bean. After my adventure playing "jack and the bean stalk", I decided to stick to just bush beans. A bounty grows a two bush beans very nicely.
AS FOR LIGHTING... I don't know how much you have. The 3 lights in the pic are 100W each plus at the top of the growing frame, I have a 250W panel and an AG 45W panel. SO... total is 595W. So far it seems to be adequate if not overkill.
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Post by agnoob on Aug 12, 2024 21:11:57 GMT -5
scarfguy Thanks for the words of wisdom! Your sugar cube looks amazing! The vent is where the HVAC sucks in air so it should be fine. My plant is growing lots of suckers - do you let them grow or nip them off so you only keep a certain number of vines? Also do you have any recommendation for a pH, EC and ppm meter? I only have a ppm one and it’s too wide to fit through the Farm’s feeding slot.
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Post by agnoob on Aug 12, 2024 21:40:00 GMT -5
As for adding a reservoir - I totally recommend that. All my Bounties and Farms are connected to at least one ~7 gal reservoir and my plants love the consistent water level. When I saw that you had to water multiple times each day, I just knew I need not one but two reservoirs for this project. I was inspired by maskedsonnet to do a huge DIY reservoir. I got the 5-gal jug and 3-gal base from Amazon and it’s a bit pricey but probably cheaper than multiple Aerovoirs. I drilled 1/4” holes near the top of the base to insert tubing. www.amazon.com/FREE-Water-Dispenser-Spigot-Gallon/dp/B0958V341C?I also got a hand pump from here: www.walmart.com/ip/Hyper-Tough-Manual-Siphon-Pump-Universal-6-ft-Hose-36201WDI/937189134The AG systems have holes for 1/4” OD tubing so the pump’s tubing is a tad too wide. I cut off most of the clear tubing at 2-3 inches away from the pump. Then I used a plastic barbed 1/4” to 3/16” reducer to connect the pump’s tubing to my own black airline tubing (OD 1/4”, ID 3/16”). I also wrapped the clear tubing and reducer in black electric tape to prevent algae growth. I made sure the height difference between the garden and the reservoir is just right so I don’t drown the plant. For this particular set up, the Bounty needs to be lifted up by 1 1/4” while the Farm needs to be up 1 1/2” for the water to hit right at the max fill line. I also use two black potato grow bags to cover each reservoir - a 7-gal one for the base and a 10-gal for the top. I like the potato grow bags with windows and flaps so I can check the water level without taking off the whole bag. |
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 13, 2024 8:37:10 GMT -5
scarfguy Thanks for the words of wisdom! Your sugar cube looks amazing! The vent is where the HVAC sucks in air so it should be fine. My plant is growing lots of suckers - do you let them grow or nip them off so you only keep a certain number of vines? Also do you have any recommendation for a pH, EC and ppm meter? I only have a ppm one and it’s too wide to fit through the Farm’s feeding slot.
Nipping the side shoots is always agonizing. Don't nip them too early as many times the female flowers will sprout from the side shoots. Once you have a few cantaloupe that look like they are developing, you can start cutting more of the side shoots. You have to trim aggressively as these vines will grow into a tangled mess in no time. I eventually get to the point where I cut off the growing tips of all of the main vines in order to control the growth. I want it to put its energy into ripening fruit. === As for meters... A couple of years ago I bought one of the higher end EC/pH meters from Hanna Instruments:
It works very well and is quite accurate.
I also have the Hanna Instruments small pH wand:
This is also very accurate. I use this one for adjusting the pH in my RO water. It fits perfectly in the neck of the AG water bottles without falling into the bottle and you don't have to hold it.
For EC, I also have one of these popular Truncheon meters
I suspect that is the one that you are having trouble getting it into the water port of the farm. If they had made it just a tiny bit smaller in diameter, it would be a great meter.
BUT... BUT... WAIT...
I now found these really cool continuous monitoring EC/pH/temp meters!
At first, I thought they were rather wonky Chinese junk but I'm a fan. I have 5 of them. The oldest ones I bought over 2 years ago and none of them have failed. I had one probe that I thought wasn't reading very accurately so I purchased a replacement probe.
You can just walk past your AGs and with a glance, read the current EC/pH/temp. You don't need one monitor for each AG as the probe cord is very long and you can move it from one AG to another one that is within reach. You can get a reading within a few seconds of inserting the probe.
The only issue I have is that because the probes are in the solution all the time, they seem to accumulate a lot of precipitate deposits around the glass bulb of the pH sensor. I suspect that it has something to do with ionization of the glass bulb. Anyway, the probes need to be cleaned about once a month to continue to read accurately.
The probe fits perfectly into an empty pod port.
You can put one of these O-rings on it to make the fit light tight.
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Post by lynnee on Aug 13, 2024 22:22:33 GMT -5
I’ve been inspired by scarfguy to start a mini cantaloupe in a Farm. I just planted a sugar cube mini cantaloupe about 3 weeks ago. I’ve read through all the posts in this thread to come up with a set up in my basement that would hopefully work.(Thsnks Scarfguy for sharing your melon wisdom!!) I hooked up the Farm to two 7-gallon reservoirs. I set up three grid panels in the back as the trellis so that when the the plant set fruit, I can just add some hanging baskets to hold them. I’ve clipped five pairs of grow lights on the grid panels hoping that’ll be enough light for the plant. And I have the dehumidifier going 24/7 to prevent any powdery mildew. Fingers crossed this will work! imgur.com/a/v1YwOis Wow! That's some setup!  I love reading about ambitious AG projects like yours, agnoob! |
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Post by LoveSalads on Aug 14, 2024 19:00:45 GMT -5
Wow the knowledge, ideas, and setups on these last pages are great to ponder on. This is giving me ideas and inspirations to design a 4 foot or so tall growing setup for longer vine cherry toms. The wheels are churning. I am going to start by stepping up my game for parameters on my hydro basins. Ordering a YINMIK monitor that I see scarfguy is giving a thumbs up to will be a great start. I am still knee deep in the outdoor garden but hey I need to start some indoor produce to keep the supply continuous. Thanks for all the ideas everyone and carry on ................... |
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Post by agnoob on Aug 18, 2024 18:53:16 GMT -5
scarfguy Thanks for the words of wisdom! Your sugar cube looks amazing! The vent is where the HVAC sucks in air so it should be fine. My plant is growing lots of suckers - do you let them grow or nip them off so you only keep a certain number of vines? Also do you have any recommendation for a pH, EC and ppm meter? I only have a ppm one and it’s too wide to fit through the Farm’s feeding slot.
Nipping the side shoots is always agonizing. Don't nip them too early as many times the female flowers will sprout from the side shoots. Once you have a few cantaloupe that look like they are developing, you can start cutting more of the side shoots. You have to trim aggressively as these vines will grow into a tangled mess in no time. I eventually get to the point where I cut off the growing tips of all of the main vines in order to control the growth. I want it to put its energy into ripening fruit. === As for meters... A couple of years ago I bought one of the higher end EC/pH meters from Hanna Instruments:
It works very well and is quite accurate.
I also have the Hanna Instruments small pH wand:
This is also very accurate. I use this one for adjusting the pH in my RO water. It fits perfectly in the neck of the AG water bottles without falling into the bottle and you don't have to hold it.
For EC, I also have one of these popular Truncheon meters
I suspect that is the one that you are having trouble getting it into the water port of the farm. If they had made it just a tiny bit smaller in diameter, it would be a great meter.
BUT... BUT... WAIT...
I now found these really cool continuous monitoring EC/pH/temp meters!
At first, I thought they were rather wonky Chinese junk but I'm a fan. I have 5 of them. The oldest ones I bought over 2 years ago and none of them have failed. I had one probe that I thought wasn't reading very accurately so I purchased a replacement probe.
You can just walk past your AGs and with a glance, read the current EC/pH/temp. You don't need one monitor for each AG as the probe cord is very long and you can move it from one AG to another one that is within reach. You can get a reading within a few seconds of inserting the probe.
The only issue I have is that because the probes are in the solution all the time, they seem to accumulate a lot of precipitate deposits around the glass bulb of the pH sensor. I suspect that it has something to do with ionization of the glass bulb. Anyway, the probes need to be cleaned about once a month to continue to read accurately.
The probe fits perfectly into an empty pod port.
You can put one of these O-rings on it to make the fit light tight.
Thanks scarfguy for the recommendations! I got the same Hanna pH meter and a similar EC/ppm meter as the Bluelab one but also from Hanna! Hanna instruments is having a 15% off sale till 9/2 so I scored both for less than $150 total. Do you also have recommendations for pH adjusting solutions? |
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 18, 2024 20:59:09 GMT -5
agnoob said, "Do you also have recommendations for pH adjusting solutions?"
I've always just used the popular General Hydroponics "pH UP" and "pH DOWN" products.
I never looked into any alternatives cause these do the job just fine.
BTW, pH down is about 3 times as strong as pH up. Use sparingly.
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 19, 2024 18:28:23 GMT -5
AND NOW BACK TO THE SUBJECT OF THIS THREAD....
I like it when the melon decides to make it's home right on the AG deck. I don't have to worry about supporting it as it develops.
So far, this is the only melon that's growing. I've attempted to pollinate about a dozen flowers so far but none are showing signs of growth. One melon is better than none. 
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Post by agnoob on Aug 19, 2024 21:21:29 GMT -5
scarfguy That’s so exciting!! How long has the plant been growing at this point?
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 19, 2024 21:31:19 GMT -5
scarfguy That’s so exciting!! How long has the plant been growing at this point?
The bounty LCD says 40 days!
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Post by lynnee on Aug 21, 2024 16:14:00 GMT -5
scarfguy That’s so exciting!! How long has the plant been growing at this point? The bounty LCD says 40 days!
Only 40 days?! This morning I did an R&R on the Aloha pepper, and it doesn't even have blossoms at 43 days. You really are good at growing melons! |
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 21, 2024 16:30:02 GMT -5
All of my plants seem to grow fast, big, and healthy (until the bugs eat them!  )
1. I ignore the every two weeks stuff. I monitor EC and pH and feed when they are hungry.
2. I see that they have plenty of the extras. I add cal-mag AND supplimental magnesium and iron regularly (although I don't have any measure as to whether or not any of these nutrients are deficient)
3. For most of my plants, my lighting is 2 of the AG light panels. That's 90 watts which is about twice the light of a bounty.
4. I use RO water and top off daily.
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Post by scarfguy on Aug 31, 2024 16:33:03 GMT -5
UPDATE... on my Mini Sugar Cube cantaloupe.
I terminated the bush bean that was growing beside it. I could have gotten a second harvest from it but the cantaloupe tendrils were wrapping around the beans, the leaves, the stems and choking it to death. It's not wise to try and grow anything near cantaloupes, watermelon, or cucumbers!
The Mini Sugar Cube is being more productive than any other melons I've tried. It looks like it's going to favor me with about 7 melons! The minature melons have been better than trying to grow large melons in an AG. My first attempt was the Minnesota Midget which produced 3 or 4 melons. When I tried a large melon, like a canary, it worked fine but I only got 1 or 2 melons.
So far, I've provided a little support for their weight with just some string. Soon, I will have to support them with melon hammocks. Nothing is worse than hearing a thud in the middle of the night and finding your prize melon shattered on the floor!
Some pics:
The big melon was the first female flower I saw. It just happened to lay nicely on the AG deck. It's about ready for harvest I think.
Two melons in this pic. One in upper left. The other one is hidden in the leaves (middle bottom)
Another one.
and another one...
and two babies that are starting to swell. They look healthy and I think they will make it if the plant has enough energy to carry them all.
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