Hydro Lettuce pic

[relichound]

Some lettuce I've been growing with a cheep homemade hydro system.

Jerry

[Granny]

Feel like elaborating on how your system works?

[robin303]

Nice set up Jerry. My big question what all do you use and put in the water nutrient wise.

[Rena]

Love it. Yes, I would love to hear the details.

[relichound]

I've been growing lettuce and other types of leafy veggies like this for a couple of year now with great results. Will post some more details soon.

Thanks,
Jerry

[dcarch]

You seem to have a good size yard. Any reason you don't plant in ground?

dcarch

[relichound]

Most of my planting is in the ground but I seem to have better luck with the lettuce,etc in this setup. I can also keep lettuce growing all year indoors with no problems.

Jerry

[amideutch]

Nice lettuce Jerry. Looks like a form of aeroponics. Ami

[relichound]

This is a very simple way to grow lettuce with great results. All you need to get started is a few supplies.
Container, some net pots, media to hold plants up right, fertilizer and a piece of Styrofoam. I start by painting the container to keep out light. Then cut out Styrofoam so the net pots fit in the top. Mix up a water soluble fertilizer of your choice. Fill the container so that the water is just touching the bottom of the net pots. Place your seedlings in the net pots and you are all set. The roots will start reaching for the nutrients very quickly. Although optional, I like to place an aquarium air stone in the container to provide oxygen to the roots. You can omit this step if you just stir the nutrients daily. I have also had great success with Basil in this system.



Jerry

[celestina]

What exactly are net pots?

[relichound]

Originally Posted by celestina

What exactly are net pots?

I also use small cups with holes punched in the bottom.

Jerry

[celestina]

thanks for the photo

[ddsack]

This reminds me of a method that I read about years ago when the internet was young, but have never tried.

To the best of my recollection, you dig a rectangular pit a little larger than a styrofoam insulation panel of 4'x8' in the ground, can't remember the depth, but am guessing about two feet, maybe less. You line it with heavy plastic (no holes for leakage) fill it with a solution of water and miracle grow type fertilizer. You float the foam panel in the pit and poke holes in it at properly spaced intervals where you insert already started lettuce seedlings - I assume one would need those little baskets you've shown to hold the soil plugs containing the lettuce seedlings.

The theory was that this was maintenence free, only adding water to the solution as it was used by the plants and minimally from evaporation, as the panel covered most of the water. The claim was that you could re-use the same solution for 2 or more lettuce crops. There was no aeration that I can remember, and not sure what they did in case of excessive rainfall (maybe most ran off the raised floating platform?) I think the guy who posted said it was developed by some ag research department in Florida, but at the time I could find no other reference to it. Have always wanted to try it. I've had house plant cuttings and tomato suckers do well in a jar of water with no additives, so it seems worth a shot. Maybe I'll do it half size first?

Dee