Strawberry update.

The strawberry, day 19.

Day 24.

Did have to start over.

Well, I did have to start another batch of seeds. Only 2 plants survived the trauma in the end, but I think it was for the better. I was beginning to worry about how I was going to change the nutrient solution. I was growing a bunch of plants that would need support, and it would have been very difficult to move the planters due to that fact when it was time to change the nutes. I realized that it would be much easier to grow support-requiring plants in a bed whose nute reservoir is NOT directly attached.

So I think my cats did me a favor, in the end. The strawberry seedling and the jaltomate seedling are all that are left of the first round, since they hadn't left the dome yet. I replanted the huckleberry, but other than that, I went a totally different route than peppers. I decided to plant some greens and herbs, which won't need support, so a nute change will be easier. I also have had to move the system to a closed off room, so those kitties can't get to the plants.

So, I've got the 3 berry seeds, 1 broccoli, 1 dell celery, 1 red stalk celery, 1 1basil, 1 thyme, 1 parsley, 1 peppermint, 1 spearmint, 1 spinach, and 3 random greens seeds that came from a salad greens mix. A lot of the seeds popped root in the 1st 24 hours of planting.

A look at the berries.

The rare jaltomate seed seems to be taking off today, but there's nothing to see. Here is the huckleberry (above) and strawberry (below).

Plenty of healthy looking pepper seedlings!

Here's some pictures of the germination dome. The really tall one is the tomato, the tiny ones are the berries, and the rest you can see are the various peppers.

Signs of future strawberries, and the pepper crop is looking promising.

Here's the strawberry sprout!
Here go the peppers!

The setup.

Here's the hydroponic setup I've got. I have the 7.5 gallon Hydrofarm Megagarden system. It has 15 planters, and it set up for ebb and flow operation.

The light is a Hydrofarm 400W HPS/MH Switchable system. I mounted it on a metal garment rack. The distance from the top of the planters to the bottom of the reflector is 4' even.

The planters will be filled with Hydrotron Expanded Clay Pellets. But that's not until we have some plants to put in them. For now, it's all about the seeds!

This is what I have to germinate my seeds, or take care of the seedlings from seeds germinated elsewhere. It is the General Hyroponics Rapid Rooter 50-planter. It has the dome to keep the humidity up, which is oh-so crucial in our dry desert climate.

I've only dropped 15 seeds in so far. I've got 15 planters, along with some materials for a small 1 or 2 plant setup. I can't assume a 100% germination rate, but whatever does sprout will go into the system. One of each of the following were put into the system: sugar nap pea, jaltomate berry, huckleberry, everbearing strawberry, black sea man tomato, banana pepper, garden salsa pepper, sweet red karma pepper, and cool breeze cucumber. There are also 6 random pepper seeds from a rainbow pack.

So that's what's in. I also put some pepper seeds in a wet paper towel in some foil to germinate, in case it doesn't work in the dome. I will transplant those guys in here once they pop a little root. I have read everything I can find about germinating seeds. So much contradictory information is out there, even on the same plants. I've decided to go with the MH lamp, on from 6am until midnight daily. I figure if I give the plants the lights they're going to get as adults, that makes sense. Also, because of the different temperature needs of the seeds, when the light is on the dome is about 80°F, which is good for the peppers. The rest of them like the lower 70°s, which they get at night. I figure the light and temperature difference will give them some idea of day and night. Maybe I'm wrong, I'm sure many seasoned gardeners could set me straight, but only one way to learn. So here we go, let's hope for some sprouts!

Grow it, cook it, eat it, love it.
The Green Guisador