Veggies in S/H - Orchid Board

DelawareJim · #1 02-18-2010, 03:52 PM

Well I've been doing S/H for 18 months and like it so much I've converted almost all my house plants to it or to hydroculture as well. I’ve also learned a lot about hydroponics in the process.

So the next step is veggies. I'm experimenting with some lettuce in S/H in my basement under lights and they do okay, but not as well as a hydroponic lettuce in a greenhouse; mostly due to cooler temps and underpowered lighting (40 watt shop lights versus a 20,000 lumen HO T5 fixture).

My next trial will be S/H tomatoes outside on the deck. Has anyone tried this? I will be growing in either a 5 gallon bucket or a 15 x 15 x 15 square planter.

My biggest question is if the drainage holes should be proportionally higher? Since the drainage holes in our 4 to 6 inch containers are about ¼ of the way up from the bottom, should I go up the same ratio (3 ½ to 4 inches up from the bottom of a 15 inch container)?

Any experience with this Ray?

Cheers.
Jim

trdyl · #2 02-18-2010, 04:07 PM

Good idea. I would think that you could set the holes a lot higher since these are not epiphytes.

nutgirl · #3 02-18-2010, 04:51 PM

Jim,

I'm so glad you posted this. I've been thinking about trying it also.

How are you doing your lettuce. I'm completely clueless about starting from seeds with hydro or S/H. Did you germinate seed or start with plants?

Maureen

DelawareJim · #4 02-19-2010, 10:40 AM

Maureen;

I grew ‘red sails’ leaf lettuce so they developed a loose head. I started with seed.

Generally, I followed the steps from the Cornell Controlled Environment Agriculture website here until they reached the float stage. They claim marketable 5 ounce heads in 35 days. Mine took quite a bit longer because of the low basement temps and low light (lettuces are light hogs).

I got a sheet of rockwool starter plugs like this from my nearest hydroponics store. Each plug has a small hole in the centre for the seed. I broke off 3 plugs, dropped in the seed, watered and placed the 3 plugs in a Ferrero Rocher chocolate box from my local drug store with the lid open just a crack to act as a mini greenhouse. Germination only took 2 days. I removed the lid when the plants hit the top. Check them daily after you remove the lid as they will dry out quickly.

Once the seedlings reached the 9-10 day stage (which took slightly over 2 weeks for me), and roots started appearing out of the plugs, I transferred them into 5 inch hydroculture pots that I bought from Hydro Orchids. I used Rays PrimeAgra in the pots because I like it better than the Leni brand LECA Jerry sells at Hydro Orchids. I filled the pot with LECA until it was about an inch or a little more from the top. Set the plug on the LECA and carefully added more LECA until the lettuce was planted. My seedlings were a little stretched from the low light, so I cover the plug completely without planting the seedling too deep. From then on, I filled each pot with either MSU or Dyna-Gro Grow fertilizer until the gauge moved from Optimum (Opt) to Maximum (Max). I never let it go below Opt.

I lost the first crop to a mouse that got into my grow chamber and ate all 3 plants right down to the LECA when they were about 3 inches tall. The second crop took almost 60 days until it was harvestable.

Lessons learned:

Keep a journal!

Lower your expectations. Don’t expect to grow a beautiful salad to serve family at Thanksgiving. Everything takes longer than it does for the commercial growers.

Watch for pests of all sizes and shapes.

You can’t give lettuce too much light indoors (shop lights really just won’t do). If I had a greenhouse, that is where I would grow in future.

It was a fun experiment, but if I were to do it indoors on a regular basis, I would invest in a full hydroponic setup with metal halide lighting.

Cheers.
Jim

DelawareJim · #5 02-19-2010, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trdyl

Good idea. I would think that you could set the holes a lot higher since these are not epiphytes.

Ted;

My thoughts exactly. Since they will be bigger plants outside in the sun and open air, I'm sure I will need a bigger reservoir and should move the holes up.

Cheers.
Jim

Ray · #6 02-19-2010, 12:19 PM

Jim,

5-gallon bucket, holes in the sidewall about 4" from the bottom, fertilized on same schedule and with same solution as orchids (buckets were outside the GH), and the tomatoes grew like mad.

...until the deer got 'em.

DelawareJim · #7 02-19-2010, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ray

Jim,

5-gallon bucket, holes in the sidewall about 4" from the bottom, fertilized on same schedule and with same solution as orchids (buckets were outside the GH), and the tomatoes grew like mad.

...until the deer got 'em.

Awesome! I knew you'd come through. Thanks!

Cheers.
Jim