You are the only start to finish, intellectual, sincere, honest kratky video maker I've found. You have no idea how much you are helping not only my family, but eventually our community. I'm starting small grows of everything prior to larger productions for any issues I run into. However, I am very confident that my issues will be minimized because of your awesomeness.
This is the best video on growing tomatoes indoors that I have seen. Sometimes people don't update what happens at the end of the experiment but you showed everything from start to finish. Well done.
Thank you SharShar,! It takes time ( a few months) to follow a tomato plant for its entire life cycle and then piece it all together, that's why you don't see the ending in so many other videos. Thanks for leaving positive feedback, I appreciate it!
Tikki's videos on home gardening in hydro are simply THE BEST videos you'll find anywhere! I am so impressed by her incredible knowledge and excellent communication skills! Thank you, Tikki, for your amazing presentations. Now I can't wait to try this.
I have two remaining Kratky tomato plants, the others have been transplanted into soil as it is April and they are ready to "harden" as long as temperatures won't go below freezing, one is over 6 feet tall. Her problem is fairly simple, she allows her plants to grow too many leaves. Pruning with the Kratky method is very important. Yes you CAN easily transplant to soil, however, you can also just keep the tomato plants growing kratky in hydroponic solution BUT you need to think about the GOAL. If you don't prune, especially bottom leaves, you have a plant that is always thirsty and also becomes droopy very fast. The goal is FRUIT. Kratky Method is a science almost but intuitive, keeping branching leaves too a minimum so the plant doesn't waste its energy. The rest of the plants energy goes towards fruiting (tomatoes). The Kratky plant has roots that seek nutrients (hydroponic solution) and roots that seek oxygen ('oxygen roots") and should not be drowned by the solution through overfilling.
This video is a jewel! Congratulations! I am from Caracas, Venezuela. I am trying growing plants indoor for the first time. It is a complete new affair for me. Your video plus your unique and crystal clear way to show and explain everything is already a how-to-do-it impossible to miss! Thanks a lot to share all of your experience. It is so useful and also very encouraging for people like me: beginners with no experience on the field! Thanks so much! Stay well and healthy! God Bless You and yoyr family! By the way: your plants and the beautiful tomatos show all the care and love you just felt doing the whole process! It shows in the video!!!! Thanks again!
Lol I do both. Some stuff are easy to grow in the ground like cilantro green onions. Some are a little bit more sensitive. You should do both. Something about getting my fingers dirty keeps me hopeful for humanity
If you ever damage roots in thinning them, you can dip the root area in honey and put them in soil or hydro. They will use the honey to encourage roots galore. Hope this helps anyone else who may have damaged a few roots when moving them around. Also, after you have the third set of leaves appear, you can snip the lowest (baby) leaves off the plant and insert the plants 2nd leaf set to top of grow cube or soil. Gluck growers
I have found that amber colored plastic whisky bottles make great hydoponic containers. I use yogurt cups for net pots. I have also used spray painted plastic juice jugs.
I really love your videos! I like how you let us see mistakes too and how you do experiments. I’m relatively new to gardening and this is day 1 of hydroponics and I’ve not only learned how to do stuff but also that failures and mistakes aren’t the end of the world ( I’m so hard on myself). I’m a teacher and I love how clearly you explain things. Thank you!
I just found Tikki and this is literally the best video I've ever seen on Hydroponic tomato growing!! Only a few minutes in and I was clicking both the like button and the subscribe button! Thank you Tikki, I feel like you are "one of us" and I appreciate that you shared your mistakes so we can all learn. I have no doubt you have helped so many with this video!! It was pieced together so well and the narration was fantastic! :)
If you want a bit larger tomato with great flavor try Campari. Sams sells them, 16 or so on the vine. I buy for the seeds if I don't have any. Been doing it at least 7 years in 5 gal buckets Some in Kratky and some in soil mix. 3 or 4 plants and you will have over 100 tomatoes at one time. I coil them before they reach the led grow lights which I adjust as needed. Vines are often 20 feet long by spring! Thanks for the video. That's how we learn.
5:33 All you need to do to keep the light out at the top of the jar ... is to put a Rubber Band around the top... leave the very top open where the plants are. Thank you for sharing this great video.
Great video! Love the narration and information. I live in Las Vegas and our tomatoes have suffered in the recent years. Can’t wait to try this. Thank you for all the info!
I love your attitude of continual improvement. It’s a lost art in our times. I was always told when you first start anything it will be hard. If you work at things you’ll improve. You clearly learned from any misstep and moved to correct it.
This is awesome and you are so good at explaining this step by step! I so long for real food and not the junk from the supermarkets especially in the winter! Also your birds outside are a pleasure to see and they look as happy as your plants! Thanks so much
I have used your video for my cherry tomato (and pepper) experiments. LOL I started the cherry tomatoes in the mason jars but after watching your video, I moved one to a large container that used to contain cheese puffs from Costco. Thanks for a very informative and educational video.
Wow that is terrific! If she is into fermenting or pickling she can also make the containers for that, they are called crocks, and people pay good money for them!
I have watched this video several times, and I learn more each time. I had bad luck with Kratky last winter because I used full spectrum white lights with a 4000 Kelvin temperature. Not nearly enough blue. But the plants in my Aerogarden thrived. ( I have only northeast and northwest windows shaded by trees.) I just bought my third Aerogarden 45 watt LED grow light because my plants love the first two. I have tomatoes and a pepper in my Aerogarden (9 pod) and bok choy, lettuce and tatsoi under the grow lights. I have a miniature eggplant ready to go under lights as soon as I can find a gallon container! Thank you so much for the step by step instructions and showing us constant progress updates of your projects.
Hi Sharon, thanks for sharing your experience. The Aerogarden is a nice unit with everything self contained...and the tomatoes and cucumbers like the aeration from the pump, and of course the proper light spectrum. Try using Kratky for lettuce and herbs, it works well. Happy growing!
Great video! New to all of this, I learned so much! I kept wondering why people were putting foil around bases - and you finally explained it beautifully to deter algae growth etc. Thank you!
This is my first year experimenting with hydroponics. I've already gotten kale to grow in a 27 gallon tote and 3D printed 2 hydroponic towers and want to make sure I can get cherry tomatoes for my salads. Great video. I learned a lot.
Your videos are long, but NO complain.. They are educational. Two thumbs up for giving your time in making your point. They are easy to follow for someone like me who is just a begginer in hydroponics. Love from the Philippines!
Hi Dengs, thanks for the comment! BTW, you can watch UA-cam videos on double speed! I often do that when the youtube video is slow moving, or the person talking is very slow.....thanks for watching, I appreciate it, and good luck with your growing!
I just binge watched 5 of your videos. I’ve already started tomatoes outside Kratky plus air stones. I can’t wait to start Lettuce from the bottoms of stalks. I was told by the owner of our local hydroponic store some grocery stores are getting wise to us and cutting the bottoms off! I hope he is wrong. I love ❤️ your style and the information you provide us. I look forward to growing vegetables inside this winter in order to save money and have fresh vegetables available. Blessings to you and your family. Stay cool.
Always love watching your videos! I am doing my first Kratky method peppers and tomatoes. My issue maybe the height. I bought a very good growing light, They are deep vibrant green because of it, like the ones in your aerogarden.
Thanks for doing start to finish. I feel with a lot of youtubers that I get bait and switched into following an entire series that leaves off the end, or you only find out in the comments that it was a failure. With yours, the whole thing is there, including lessons learned!
THIS IS A GREAT VIDEO. THANK YOU. YOU ARE SO INFORMATIVE. I JUST STARTED A NEW AEROGARDEN. I TRANSPLANTED MY OTHER CHERRY TOMATOES TO LARGER JARS, BUT THEY WERE GETTING TO TALL FOR MY GROW LIGHTS AND I DID NOT KNOW WHETHER TO GET SOMETHING TOBRACE THEM WITH OR CUT THEM. NOW I AM STARTING OVER.
New sub I liked your video. I have grown tomatoes using the Kratky method. I like to use 5 gallon buckets. They do pretty good. I really hate to kill seedlings so I like to find them a new home too. I was really glad to see you end up saving those seedlings :) Thanks for sharing :) Happy gardening!
I love how detailed you documented your experience with this home project! Im so curious about how the aerogarden plants remain small but still put out a nice crop while the others get to grow so tall
excellent video. Last year we tried the Kratky method with a 55 gallon drum, previously used for fish fertilizer (wow, did it stink!) to grow cukes. Good results, but it had too much sun. This year we have moved the drum to an area that will get partial sun. We are also (using unused rain barrels) planning to grow tomatoes and something else (to be determined). We will take advantage of your advise in this video. By the way, love your accent. Even after living in New England for many years I still revert to my former Brooklyn life, especially when I say COUGH EE. Thanks again, Ira
@@CurlyJoeX Thanks Curly Joe for the comment. The seedpods from the Aerogarden are preplanted with multiple seeds per pod, these tomato plants were "rescued" from those pods.
@@CurlyJoeX, that’s how Aerogarden reduces claims on their guarantee. Plus, it doesn’t waste the photons that the lights have been putting out during the time you’re waiting. ;)
Your channel is addicting because it is so helpful and full of info. Thank you for the variety of tomato videos. That way we can watch several and then choose what works best for us.
Agreed R.K. Humans can be so awesome when they use their knowledge for the betterment of mankind, instead of thinking of ways to crush other human souls. Good to be on the giving side of that equation.
Nice. I took a cutting from an indeterminate cherry tomato variety and grew it Kratky style... but it keeps growing and growing, and I keep cutting it back. So now I'm growing a heirloom dwarf determinate variety called Tiny Tim (they only grow to 12-18"). I''m using the black home depot 5-gallon buckets, my plants are flowering and they are only down about an inch in nutrient after 5-weeks. THANKS for the electric toothbrush idea, I had an old battery powered one that I'm going to use.
yep, I think the determinate have a determination as to size, and the indeterminate keep growing and growing indefinitely .....is what a person told me....
Awesome video! I made the same mistake with kratky tomatoes. I grew Tiny Tim’s in a pint jar and I got some tomatoes but it would have been more productive if it had more room for the roots
Tikki, I'm watching all of these again, as a review. I got many of the supplies I needed from Amazon, and they arrived today! I AM SO EXCITED! With your guidance, I may even have a shot at growing something successfully. 😁
Thanks Just Floating for the feedback, and good luck! Don't be discouraged if you don't succeed right away. Everyone has a different growing environment and different water, etc, so you will learn and adjust along the way. Enjoy the journey!
Great job from the very beginning. It's taken me two years just to get tomato's in the green house. Liked your scientific method to try your best yields.
I might have missed it, but did you notice a difference between the grow big and masterblend? You got me started in kratky 1 year ago. I can't tell you how thankful I am. I am also trying micro dwarf tomatoes this winter.
Many years ago, for my daughter's science experiment we grew buttercrunch lettuce using the Kratky method. I had the privilege of speaking to Bernard Kratky and purchasing the fertilizer from him. We used styrofoam fish crates. We cut 6 round holes on the lid of the crate. I took 6 styrofoam coffee cups and made vertical slits on the sides and poked holes on the bottom. The buttercrunch seed was planted in potting soil, about 1/4" deep. The styrofoam cups were suspended into water with hydroponic growing solution. Seedings appeared within one week. Beautiful long, white roots protruded from the slits and holes in the cups. The roots from the 6 cups "held hands." Within 6 weeks, the buttercrunch lettuce was about 12" wide at the top. The lettuce was large, like kale. The beauty of this non-circulating system is that it is simple and you don't have to worry about mosquitoes. We keep the crates outside along our house eaves so rainwater would not affect the water PH balance. We did not have to refill the water and there was no problem with algae build up.
Thank you for sharing! It is so helpful to see the progress of these tomato plants - it’s definitely helped me decide to transfer my Aerogarden Rosy Finch tomato seedlings to mason jars early one.. They are now at 21 days old and already at 3” tall. But the roots are getting quite long already (hence large mason jar will be needed soon). What I was wondering - have you done root trimming on your Rosy Finch plants? I’m debating whether I should do this later on or not. Would be of great help. Thank you. And again, thank you for sharing all of your Kratky adventures!
The beauty of this type of hydroponics is that the plant can easily be upgraded to a larger container. Note: tomato is one of those plants that will easily root from a stem cutting in water, after the old plant needs to be replaced. If there's any way to leave the window blinds up and out of the way during the day, you'll substantially increase the natural light to your plants. Great video--thanks!
You should use 5 gal. buckets for tomatoes and cucumbers. For anyone seeing this that lives in Barren county Ky. check with MSR (Midstate recyclers. They also have one in TN somewhere. They give them away for free and they are food grade they come from the hospital. Also check with your locale hospital or nursing home. Lawrence
Thanks Lawrence for the tips...you are right, next time I will do this using 5 gallon buckets or totes. But the results were not bad considering these grew in mason jars! But I learned my lesson. Thanks for the comment!
Thanks Evil Dude, I will look for the number on the tote, but its probably on the bottom and the tote is heavy at this point filled with water and plants! But I will try to lift and look, thanks for the tip, please let us know if your neighbor lives....
I use a 5 gallon bucket (12,12,6) right to the top then poured 1 gallon each but for some reason only got 4 1/2 gallon who figures.... Know about the recipe totally confused 5 gallon recipe: Add 12g (approx 2 tsp) CN to 5 gallons of water and dissolve completely. Add 12g MB (approx 2 tsp) and dissolve completely. then it said add 6g (approx 2 tsp) Epsom Salt HUH ??? again 12g, 12g, 6g why does it say all 3 said 2 tsp prnt.sc/npr2k5 that recipe must have an error it should say 12g CN (approx 2 tsp) 12g MB (approx 2 tsp) and should say 6g ES (approx 1 tsp) coz I don't understand
Maxwell House comes in a huge blue container. I'm glad you tried it in the jars first, just so we know. What may seem obvious with typical soil gardening could be different in hydro. That same volume of soil would have never let the plant grow that big. Huge jars of pickles are less than $10 and reusable.
This is wonderful! Thank you for sharing 😊 I just setup my new Aerogarden yesterday and also purchased some supplies to start the Kratky method. I'm not sure what I'll grow yet but tomatoes are at the top of my list. What kind of grow lights do you use? Thanks again from 🇨🇦
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. Your video is well executed and a good follow up video would be greatly appreciated too if you have the time. Subject matter could be sharing all of your improvements that you learned from the first video. 4 to 5 months growing little tomatoes makes me think that there is a definite debilitating feature going on. Thanks again
I experimented with hydroponics/deep water culture, about 8 years ago. Since my General Hydroponics Flora Series were 8 years old ordered another setup. I took a couple cuttings from my tomato garden and got setup in 5 gl buckets with 6 inch mesh pots, 2" rockwool cubes & lava rock. They are looking Amazing and they are Giant! The Sweet 100 cherries are twice the size of the Better Boy plants and will produce Pure Satisfaction to me!!! I Love some Hydroponics! 😁
That is awesome. What kind of light did you use? What state do you live in? Im curious because I am really far north and growing a tomato indoors up here is basically un heard of. If I can grow some tiny tomato plants that give me fruit over the winter then I would be extremely happy and grateful.. Thank you for the video!
Hi Alrachid, I am in Zone 5-6, some charts say 6, some say 5, the temps in the winter get to single digits F, some times below zero (not counting windchill), but today is brutally cold. Grow some lettuce and microgreens together with your tomatoes, they grow quickly and are delicious too!
I like the GE two foot fixture, you can hang it over the plants. It’s LED and VERY bright! (might be too bright for when you’re actually working in the kitchen. There are smaller models as well.
Nice one Tikki O! My first time this year, I took 5 gallon water containers with lids.. I am using them on their sides because these are tall narrow containers.. and drilled 6 holes in them to fit net pots and tried growing Kratky toms, 6 per container. toms were doing great and then got droopy, as the nutrient level was getting low, I topped back up but they never recovered and I could not work out why. Later, I was growing Cos lettuce in the same way and it seemed like they were doubling in size each day, Mine are growing outdoors in summer and we have had a couple of big spells of rain which dilutes the nutrient, so I checked and amended it. Afterward, the Cos lettuce drooped! I noticed that I had not topped it back up to the same level it was before my tweaks to the nutrient. So I brought it back to about the same level and they came good immediately. So now, I think the problem with the tomatoes was that the nutrient got too low and I needed to have brought the level back up slowly. I basically drowned the plant, even though 2/3 of the roots were dry. Such a delicate balance. Good luck everyone!
I appreciate your videos so much! It's like learning from a friend! What is your findings with the nutrient solutions you were trying: Fox farm vs Masterblend?
Idk but they didn't use enough, it's not 2-2-1 for 1 gallon of masterblend it's 2.4-2.4-1.2 ... So that would have hurt the results anyway possibly. In my experience testing maxigro/maxibloom, dynagro, flora trio, and masterblend they all work about as well for my tomatoes and peppers, and with how cheap masterblend is might as well go with that.
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You are the only start to finish, intellectual, sincere, honest kratky video maker I've found. You have no idea how much you are helping not only my family, but eventually our community. I'm starting small grows of everything prior to larger productions for any issues I run into. However, I am very confident that my issues will be minimized because of your awesomeness.
This is the best video on growing tomatoes indoors that I have seen. Sometimes people don't update what happens at the end of the experiment but you showed everything from start to finish. Well done.
Thank you SharShar,! It takes time ( a few months) to follow a tomato plant for its entire life cycle and then piece it all together, that's why you don't see the ending in so many other videos. Thanks for leaving positive feedback, I appreciate it!
who is Kratky? sounds very negative. it instantly associates with a lot of negative words.
Maybe u should go seek professional help before starting to grow flowers. Just my 2 cents @@seanleith5312
Great video. How do you give your plants light in winter
The world needs more honest sharing of clear, concise, and thorough information. Well done.
I really liked your video and your narration reminded me of a well written and interesting book that held my attention.
If I ever had teachers who talk like Tikki, I would never fall asleep, learn a lot
Tikki's videos on home gardening in hydro are simply THE BEST videos you'll find anywhere! I am so impressed by her incredible knowledge and excellent communication skills! Thank you, Tikki, for your amazing presentations. Now I can't wait to try this.
Thank you Joe!
I have two remaining Kratky tomato plants, the others have been transplanted into soil as it is April and they are ready to "harden" as long as temperatures won't go below freezing, one is over 6 feet tall. Her problem is fairly simple, she allows her plants to grow too many leaves. Pruning with the Kratky method is very important. Yes you CAN easily transplant to soil, however, you can also just keep the tomato plants growing kratky in hydroponic solution BUT you need to think about the GOAL. If you don't prune, especially bottom leaves, you have a plant that is always thirsty and also becomes droopy very fast. The goal is FRUIT. Kratky Method is a science almost but intuitive, keeping branching leaves too a minimum so the plant doesn't waste its energy. The rest of the plants energy goes towards fruiting (tomatoes). The Kratky plant has roots that seek nutrients (hydroponic solution) and roots that seek oxygen ('oxygen roots") and should not be drowned by the solution through overfilling.
This video is a jewel! Congratulations! I am from Caracas, Venezuela. I am trying growing plants indoor for the first time. It is a complete new affair for me. Your video plus your unique and crystal clear way to show and explain everything is already a how-to-do-it impossible to miss! Thanks a lot to share all of your experience. It is so useful and also very encouraging for people like me: beginners with no experience on the field! Thanks so much! Stay well and healthy! God Bless You and yoyr family! By the way: your plants and the beautiful tomatos show all the care and love you just felt doing the whole process! It shows in the video!!!! Thanks again!
Best UA-cam instructional video I have seen in a long time.
OMG. You single handedly convinced me to switch to hydro. Thats it. Im done with soil.
Lol I do both. Some stuff are easy to grow in the ground like cilantro green onions. Some are a little bit more sensitive. You should do both. Something about getting my fingers dirty keeps me hopeful for humanity
How is it going!
She convinced us too!!
You might as well for indoors, some stuff needs too much nutes though just depends on what you’re growin
Both have advantages. Want to go on a weekend vacation? Hydro will need attention, coco hydro will hold enough water till you get back.
Of all the videos I have watched about hydroponics, you are a blessing to all of us beginners! Thank you!
If you ever damage roots in thinning them, you can dip the root area in honey and put them in soil or hydro. They will use the honey to encourage roots galore. Hope this helps anyone else who may have damaged a few roots when moving them around. Also, after you have the third set of leaves appear, you can snip the lowest (baby) leaves off the plant and insert the plants 2nd leaf set to top of grow cube or soil. Gluck growers
I have found that amber colored plastic whisky bottles make great hydoponic containers. I use yogurt cups for net pots. I have also used spray painted plastic juice jugs.
Great idea! I drink way more Folgers coffee than whisky, so that is what I have. Juice jugs also a good idea, thanks for the feedback!
I really love your videos! I like how you let us see mistakes too and how you do experiments. I’m relatively new to gardening and this is day 1 of hydroponics and I’ve not only learned how to do stuff but also that failures and mistakes aren’t the end of the world ( I’m so hard on myself). I’m a teacher and I love how clearly you explain things. Thank you!
I am a retired teacher and I wish I had learned about kratky to put in my classroom.
Loved the part about optimizing light placement at [7:53]. 💡 Really makes a difference!
My family and I loved this video. Informative, creative, and clearly presented.
I just found Tikki and this is literally the best video I've ever seen on Hydroponic tomato growing!! Only a few minutes in and I was clicking both the like button and the subscribe button! Thank you Tikki, I feel like you are "one of us" and I appreciate that you shared your mistakes so we can all learn. I have no doubt you have helped so many with this video!! It was pieced together so well and the narration was fantastic! :)
If you want a bit larger tomato with great flavor try Campari. Sams sells them, 16 or so on the vine.
I buy for the seeds if I don't have any. Been doing it at least 7 years in 5 gal buckets Some in Kratky and some in soil mix. 3 or 4 plants and you will have over 100 tomatoes at one time. I coil them before they reach the led grow lights which I adjust as needed. Vines are often 20 feet long by spring! Thanks for the video. That's how we learn.
5:33
All you need to do to keep the light out at the top of the jar ... is to put a Rubber Band around the top... leave the very top open where the plants are.
Thank you for sharing this great video.
Thank you. You're success and minor failure inspire me to do hydrophonic farming.
Walmart and many stores sell gallon size jars of pickles, they work great for kratky and you get pickles!
Great job. I am currently growing 3 kinds of tomatoes in home depot buckets with an air stone in each. They are doing great.
Great video! Love the narration and information. I live in Las Vegas and our tomatoes have suffered in the recent years. Can’t wait to try this. Thank you for all the info!
I love your attitude of continual improvement. It’s a lost art in our times. I was always told when you first start anything it will be hard. If you work at things you’ll improve. You clearly learned from any misstep and moved to correct it.
This is awesome and you are so good at explaining this step by step! I so long for real food and not the junk from the supermarkets especially in the winter! Also your birds outside are a pleasure to see and they look as happy as your plants! Thanks so much
Thanks Joanne, I appreciate it! It is fun to grow, and it is rewarding when you can munch on stuff you grow yourself, give it a try!
I have used your video for my cherry tomato (and pepper) experiments. LOL I started the cherry tomatoes in the mason jars but after watching your video, I moved one to a large container that used to contain cheese puffs from Costco. Thanks for a very informative and educational video.
Well done. I just started playing with outdoor Kratky tomato. Plant is growing great in a 20 litre bucket. Thanks Tikki.
Some excellent ideas. My wife is a potter and is planning the jars she will now make for our indoor gardens.
Wow that is terrific! If she is into fermenting or pickling she can also make the containers for that, they are called crocks, and people pay good money for them!
It's so nice that you showed and explained each stage of the growing process. Really shows it from start to finish. Thank you for sharing
Kyaide, thank you for the comment, I appreciate it!
I have watched this video several times, and I learn more each time. I had bad luck with Kratky last winter because I used full spectrum white lights with a 4000 Kelvin temperature. Not nearly enough blue. But the plants in my Aerogarden thrived. ( I have only northeast and northwest windows shaded by trees.)
I just bought my third Aerogarden 45 watt LED grow light because my plants love the first two. I have tomatoes and a pepper in my Aerogarden (9 pod) and bok choy, lettuce and tatsoi under the grow lights. I have a miniature eggplant ready to go under lights as soon as I can find a gallon container!
Thank you so much for the step by step instructions and showing us constant progress updates of your projects.
Hi Sharon, thanks for sharing your experience. The Aerogarden is a nice unit with everything self contained...and the tomatoes and cucumbers like the aeration from the pump, and of course the proper light spectrum. Try using Kratky for lettuce and herbs, it works well. Happy growing!
Great video! New to all of this, I learned so much! I kept wondering why people were putting foil around bases - and you finally explained it beautifully to deter algae growth etc. Thank you!
This is my first year experimenting with hydroponics. I've already gotten kale to grow in a 27 gallon tote and 3D printed 2 hydroponic towers and want to make sure I can get cherry tomatoes for my salads. Great video. I learned a lot.
LOL, "I can't help myself!" Love it.
Your videos are long, but NO complain.. They are educational. Two thumbs up for giving your time in making your point. They are easy to follow for someone like me who is just a begginer in hydroponics. Love from the Philippines!
Hi Dengs, thanks for the comment! BTW, you can watch UA-cam videos on double speed! I often do that when the youtube video is slow moving, or the person talking is very slow.....thanks for watching, I appreciate it, and good luck with your growing!
This video really made wanna try out Kratky method. I am already shopping for basics :D
Thanks, greetings from Czech republic!
Hi Marysa, good luck with it!
I just binge watched 5 of your videos. I’ve already started tomatoes outside Kratky plus air stones. I can’t wait to start Lettuce from the bottoms of stalks. I was told by the owner of our local hydroponic store some grocery stores are getting wise to us and cutting the bottoms off! I hope he is wrong. I love ❤️ your style and the information you provide us. I look forward to growing vegetables inside this winter in order to save money and have fresh vegetables available. Blessings to you and your family. Stay cool.
Excellent presentation,there are thousands out there that
do very poorly.
Just the info you need ,well done!
Thanks Rex drabble, I appreciate that!
You are much better at describing all possible mistakes and help. Thanks a mil and well done! Am going to try..
Isn’t it fun, omg I love garden experiments so much. Great video.
Thanks Norma, I totally agree!
So so informative and explained very well.
It’s hard to believe that you get fruit in an small jar! Great job and thank you so much.
Always love watching your videos! I am doing my first Kratky method peppers and tomatoes. My issue maybe the height. I bought a very good growing light, They are deep vibrant green because of it, like the ones in your aerogarden.
Great video and lots of good information. Good tip on sizing container for plant sizing and saving the seedlings that would otherwise be sacrificed.
Thank you. I've never ever commented on someone's video but I had to tell you that you did a great job. Very informative;)
Thanks Jesi, I really appreciate the feedback!
Thanks for doing start to finish. I feel with a lot of youtubers that I get bait and switched into following an entire series that leaves off the end, or you only find out in the comments that it was a failure. With yours, the whole thing is there, including lessons learned!
Dollar store sells large plastic pots for 1$ ... your video was really helpful! Am going to give it a try ! Thanks
2 cents....thanks for your 2 cents, I forgot how great a resource the dollar store can be!
THIS IS A GREAT VIDEO. THANK YOU. YOU ARE SO INFORMATIVE. I JUST STARTED A NEW AEROGARDEN. I TRANSPLANTED MY OTHER CHERRY TOMATOES TO LARGER JARS, BUT THEY WERE GETTING TO TALL FOR MY GROW LIGHTS AND I DID NOT KNOW WHETHER TO GET SOMETHING TOBRACE THEM WITH OR CUT THEM. NOW I AM STARTING OVER.
Did you notice a difference with the nutrient solution you used? The master vs. the other?
I am super new to hydroponics. Your videos are great. I can follow it. Thank you so much from San Jose CA
New sub I liked your video. I have grown tomatoes using the Kratky method. I like to use 5 gallon buckets. They do pretty good. I really hate to kill seedlings so I like to find them a new home too. I was really glad to see you end up saving those seedlings :) Thanks for sharing :) Happy gardening!
Thanks Benja's Uber, good luck with the tomatoes!
You are a natural instructor and home scientist.
I love how detailed you documented your experience with this home project! Im so curious about how the aerogarden plants remain small but still put out a nice crop while the others get to grow so tall
It's because the Aerogarden has a 45 watt grow light that is very close to the leaves. Plants don't do as well in a window.
Excellent video and so beautifully explained with patience. Clay pebbles idea was brilliant.
Thanks so much 😊
I’m starting my own tomorrow - thanks for the tips !
excellent video. Last year we tried the Kratky method with a 55 gallon drum, previously used for fish fertilizer (wow, did it stink!) to grow cukes. Good results, but it had too much sun. This year we have moved the drum to an area that will get partial sun. We are also (using unused rain barrels) planning to grow tomatoes and something else (to be determined). We will take advantage of your advise in this video. By the way, love your accent. Even after living in New England for many years I still revert to my former Brooklyn life, especially when I say COUGH EE. Thanks again, Ira
This is a fantastic video! Thank you so much for putting this together, must've been a lot of work and patience.
very good video. To the point with very well documented progress the tomatoes plant made at key intervals. Thank you
Glad someone feels the same way I do when thinning plants lol
Thanks Tally Hall Enthusiast, I can't help it, it seems like such a waste.....even though its necessary! Glad you agree also!
I only plant one seed per pot. If it doesn't germinate then plant that pot again. Why would you waste germinated seeds/plants?
@@CurlyJoeX Thanks Curly Joe for the comment. The seedpods from the Aerogarden are preplanted with multiple seeds per pod, these tomato plants were "rescued" from those pods.
@@CurlyJoeX, that’s how Aerogarden reduces claims on their guarantee. Plus, it doesn’t waste the photons that the lights have been putting out during the time you’re waiting. ;)
You did better than I did my first time with Kratky. I'll bet you are a pro now. Cheers.
You made it look easy. Great job!
Your channel is addicting because it is so helpful and full of info. Thank you for the variety of tomato videos. That way we can watch several and then choose what works best for us.
Thanks Amy, I appreciate that!
God bless the people who invented the kratky and the self watering planters and hydroponics.
Amen to that R. K.!
Agreed R.K. Humans can be so awesome when they use their knowledge for the betterment of mankind, instead of thinking of ways to crush other human souls. Good to be on the giving side of that equation.
Vickie Adams So true
You are so Fun!!! and that video was tremendously helpful. Have a wonderful day and spring and summer. thanks for sharing such great information.
Nice. I took a cutting from an indeterminate cherry tomato variety and grew it Kratky style... but it keeps growing and growing, and I keep cutting it back. So now I'm growing a heirloom dwarf determinate variety called Tiny Tim (they only grow to 12-18"). I''m using the black home depot 5-gallon buckets, my plants are flowering and they are only down about an inch in nutrient after 5-weeks. THANKS for the electric toothbrush idea, I had an old battery powered one that I'm going to use.
yep, I think the determinate have a determination as to size, and the indeterminate keep growing and growing indefinitely .....is what a person told me....
I am new to this method of indoor growing. Looking forward to this fun, interesting way of providing vetegatables from my indoor growing experience.
Awesome video! I made the same mistake with kratky tomatoes. I grew Tiny Tim’s in a pint jar and I got some tomatoes but it would have been more productive if it had more room for the roots
Thank you for showing how you are doing things and why you are doing them
I really learned a lot from this video, keep up the good work.
- Cheers from Sweden
Uffeman, thank you for the nice comment!
Tikki, I'm watching all of these again, as a review. I got many of the supplies I needed from Amazon, and they arrived today!
I AM SO EXCITED! With your guidance, I may even have a shot at growing something successfully. 😁
Thanks Just Floating for the feedback, and good luck! Don't be discouraged if you don't succeed right away. Everyone has a different growing environment and different water, etc, so you will learn and adjust along the way. Enjoy the journey!
Tikki, thank you! This is one of the best instructional videos I have ever seen. Brava!!! I am now a fan and a subscriber! Cheers.
Thanks Heather, I really appreciate the nice comment!
Great job from the very beginning. It's taken me two years just to get tomato's in the green house. Liked your scientific method to try your best yields.
Great job mam. Thank you so much for doing this. I know it takes time to edit and produce a good video and I think you did a great job.
this is one of the most informative and simple to understand video that I have ever watched, keep going the record and share with us,
Thank you enes, I appreciate it!
I might have missed it, but did you notice a difference between the grow big and masterblend? You got me started in kratky 1 year ago. I can't tell you how thankful I am. I am also trying micro dwarf tomatoes this winter.
She forgot about it! I am trying microdwarves too.
very good video complete strate to the point with no obnoxious background music or loud obnoxious greeting at the beginning.
Terrific video, thanks for sharing it!!!
I love your video for the fact that you get to the point quickly and move on!! Thank you for great info and for not wasting my time. :)
Many years ago, for my daughter's science experiment we grew buttercrunch lettuce using the Kratky method. I had the privilege of speaking to Bernard Kratky and purchasing the fertilizer from him. We used styrofoam fish crates. We cut 6 round holes on the lid of the crate. I took 6 styrofoam coffee cups and made vertical slits on the sides and poked holes on the bottom. The buttercrunch seed was planted in potting soil, about 1/4" deep. The styrofoam cups were suspended into water with hydroponic growing solution. Seedings appeared within one week. Beautiful long, white roots protruded from the slits and holes in the cups. The roots from the 6 cups "held hands." Within 6 weeks, the buttercrunch lettuce was about 12" wide at the top. The lettuce was large, like kale. The beauty of this non-circulating system is that it is simple and you don't have to worry about mosquitoes. We keep the crates outside along our house eaves so rainwater would not affect the water PH balance. We did not have to refill the water and there was no problem with algae build up.
Thanks Amy, Dr. Kratky is a legend! Thanks for sharing!
Your videos are really inspiring for a beginner like me. You are a fearless researcher and very honest.
Thank you for sharing! It is so helpful to see the progress of these tomato plants - it’s definitely helped me decide to transfer my Aerogarden Rosy Finch tomato seedlings to mason jars early one.. They are now at 21 days old and already at 3” tall. But the roots are getting quite long already (hence large mason jar will be needed soon).
What I was wondering - have you done root trimming on your Rosy Finch plants? I’m debating whether I should do this later on or not. Would be of great help. Thank you.
And again, thank you for sharing all of your Kratky adventures!
Thank you , this is the best video of planting using this method.
Great video...very informative. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Thank you Brenda!
The beauty of this type of hydroponics is that the plant can easily be upgraded to a larger container. Note: tomato is one of those plants that will easily root from a stem cutting in water, after the old plant needs to be replaced.
If there's any way to leave the window blinds up and out of the way during the day, you'll substantially increase the natural light to your plants.
Great video--thanks!
Thanks Rick for the tips and feedback! And yes, a bigger container is usually better, especially with tomatoes! Thanks for the comment!
You should use 5 gal. buckets for tomatoes and cucumbers. For anyone seeing this that lives in Barren county Ky. check with MSR (Midstate recyclers. They also have one in TN somewhere. They give them away for free and they are food grade they come from the hospital. Also check with your locale hospital or nursing home. Lawrence
Thanks Lawrence for the tips...you are right, next time I will do this using 5 gallon buckets or totes. But the results were not bad considering these grew in mason jars! But I learned my lesson. Thanks for the comment!
Thanks Evil Dude, I will look for the number on the tote, but its probably on the bottom and the tote is heavy at this point filled with water and plants! But I will try to lift and look, thanks for the tip, please let us know if your neighbor lives....
I use a 5 gallon bucket (12,12,6) right to the top then poured 1 gallon each but for some reason only got 4 1/2 gallon who figures.... Know about the recipe totally confused 5 gallon recipe: Add 12g (approx 2 tsp) CN to 5 gallons of water and dissolve completely. Add 12g MB (approx 2 tsp) and dissolve completely. then it said add 6g (approx 2 tsp) Epsom Salt HUH ???
again 12g, 12g, 6g why does it say all 3 said 2 tsp prnt.sc/npr2k5 that recipe must have an error it should say 12g CN (approx 2 tsp) 12g MB (approx 2 tsp) and should say 6g ES (approx 1 tsp)
coz I don't understand
@@TikkiOOO Wouldn't a 5 gallon bucket for each of 3 seedlings be too big for indoor gardening?
Not for tomatoes, they do better in a larger container.
Maxwell House comes in a huge blue container. I'm glad you tried it in the jars first, just so we know. What may seem obvious with typical soil gardening could be different in hydro. That same volume of soil would have never let the plant grow that big. Huge jars of pickles are less than $10 and reusable.
best and so detail explanations, love your video :)
Thank you VanNelleX, I appreciate it!
Love your video on growing tomatoes indoors. Very informative.
Thanks for watching and for the comment, I appreciate it!
This is wonderful! Thank you for sharing 😊 I just setup my new Aerogarden yesterday and also purchased some supplies to start the Kratky method. I'm not sure what I'll grow yet but tomatoes are at the top of my list. What kind of grow lights do you use? Thanks again from 🇨🇦
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. Your video is well executed and a good follow up video would be greatly appreciated too if you have the time. Subject matter could be sharing all of your improvements that you learned from the first video. 4 to 5 months growing little tomatoes makes me think that there is a definite debilitating feature going on.
Thanks again
will you kindly teach me how you change the fertilizer solution when the plant reaches to mature for flowering..
Nice video for a person that doesn’t have anything else to do. Nice tutorial!
Thanks for sharing this, a lot of great information there.
Thanks Peter for the nice comment!
I experimented with hydroponics/deep water culture, about 8 years ago. Since my General Hydroponics Flora Series were 8 years old ordered another setup. I took a couple cuttings from my tomato garden and got setup in 5 gl buckets with 6 inch mesh pots, 2" rockwool cubes & lava rock. They are looking Amazing and they are Giant! The Sweet 100 cherries are twice the size of the Better Boy plants and will produce Pure Satisfaction to me!!! I Love some Hydroponics! 😁
That is awesome. What kind of light did you use? What state do you live in? Im curious because I am really far north and growing a tomato indoors up here is basically un heard of. If I can grow some tiny tomato plants that give me fruit over the winter then I would be extremely happy and grateful.. Thank you for the video!
Hi Alrachid, I am in Zone 5-6, some charts say 6, some say 5, the temps in the winter get to single digits F, some times below zero (not counting windchill), but today is brutally cold. Grow some lettuce and microgreens together with your tomatoes, they grow quickly and are delicious too!
I like the GE two foot fixture, you can hang it over the plants. It’s LED and VERY bright! (might be too bright for when you’re actually working in the kitchen. There are smaller models as well.
Thanks for sharing your tomato journey
Love the video.
Thank you Heirloom, I appreciate it!
Nice one Tikki O! My first time this year, I took 5 gallon water containers with lids.. I am using them on their sides because these are tall narrow containers.. and drilled 6 holes in them to fit net pots and tried growing Kratky toms, 6 per container. toms were doing great and then got droopy, as the nutrient level was getting low, I topped back up but they never recovered and I could not work out why. Later, I was growing Cos lettuce in the same way and it seemed like they were doubling in size each day, Mine are growing outdoors in summer and we have had a couple of big spells of rain which dilutes the nutrient, so I checked and amended it. Afterward, the Cos lettuce drooped! I noticed that I had not topped it back up to the same level it was before my tweaks to the nutrient. So I brought it back to about the same level and they came good immediately. So now, I think the problem with the tomatoes was that the nutrient got too low and I needed to have brought the level back up slowly. I basically drowned the plant, even though 2/3 of the roots were dry. Such a delicate balance. Good luck everyone!
I appreciate your videos so much! It's like learning from a friend! What is your findings with the nutrient solutions you were trying: Fox farm vs Masterblend?
I was wondering the same thing.
I was hoping I'd find that answer too.
Idk but they didn't use enough, it's not 2-2-1 for 1 gallon of masterblend it's 2.4-2.4-1.2 ... So that would have hurt the results anyway possibly. In my experience testing maxigro/maxibloom, dynagro, flora trio, and masterblend they all work about as well for my tomatoes and peppers, and with how cheap masterblend is might as well go with that.
Great video. Lovely informational narrative.Will definitely watch more of your videos. Thanks.
Very informative video, thanks!
Thank you Brandon Miniman, I appreciate it!
Thanks for choosing more affordable options!
Thanks Victoria! 👍😎