So excited to see this experiment! I invested in an aerogarden harvest as my first hydroponic system ever after watching some of your videos! I planted spinach in it with the paper towel method per your recommendation and they started great! After the first couple harvests, they started looking weak and having yellow spots on the leaves (Google spinach magnesium deficiency). I happened to have some calmagic on hand for some hydroponic tomatoes and adding 2mL of that a week has brought my spinach back to thriving!
In the past couple weeks I watched so many of your videos, I'm really, really loving your channel! It's been a gardening dream of mine to own an Aerogarden unit but they're not available in Europe. I've even been told that while it would work here, bringing a unit to Europe and using it here voids the warranty. What I gather from your videos is that iDOO systems are OK as an AG alternative. Is this still your opinion? They go for around $100 here (8-pod & 10-pod models). Only LetPot and iDOO systems are available inside EU, except for those weird brands that pop up here and there. Would appreciate your opinion as a seasoned Aerogardener.
Great experiment. I have not tried spinach yet, but from this- i know chives seem to be finicky to germinate, so i did the paper towel method with a bunch of chive seeds last night to see if i can germ on towel first - then plant. i don't know squat about electricity, but if you unplug the pump on the let pot- and then plugged machine back in into a wattage meter would that tell you the wattage of the lights? ( as it would be the only thing drawing juice?) and another thing to add from dollar store- they have a nice handy pruner - as i lose my scissors every day! and i am going to have to say, thanks to you i now own 9 of these machines 😃
I too found out Spinach being a cold weather crop does not germinate hydroponically for me. So how long was it from the time you started the wet paper towel method to the day you saw those sprouts that long ? I also planted the Bloomsdale in my Raised Garden Beds last mid September & still have a 2nd crop of spinach even though here on the east coast in zone 7B it has been super COLD. I just covered each bed with a thick bath towel then plastic table cloth or used shower curtain & uncovered as soon as the sun warmed to the high 30's or low 40's & uncovered them. I just want to grow spinach indoors in my Aero garden Bounty Elites really bad!.
I would love to know if covering up the spinach seeds in the pots would help with germination. I've been thinking about adding some peat/coir/wet paper towel pressed down the little hole to give good ground contact and a no air pocket. Add the humidity dome and it would then mimic the bag. Have you ever tried something like this? 2nd alternative would be to put the seeds in the pods and then put the pods in the bag. Seeds would then not have to be transferred. No real idea of how it would work. Also have you ever tried to measure the light strength with the different models? Your phone might be accurate enough. I see many now listed with 36W lights. I am wondering if they are actually brighter/grow better? Hopefully that's 2 new video ideas. Thanks always for the experiments!!
You now have a baseline..... 1 out of 26 pots (4%) germinated 1 out of 52 seeds (2%) germinated. Experiment could be done in 1 unit -10 days - same seeds.
I noticed that there were no mufga units in the Dec 2023 or Jan 2024 "what i am growing" videos or any of the recent experiment videos. Have there been any issues that may have cause you to stop using them as i was interested in purchasing a mufga that currently on sale on amazon
Mufga is still doing fine. I just have to accommodate a few systems as I am testing them, so I gave a break to Mufga and iDoo systems. I will be bringing Mufga back soon.
i think it is because Letpot has very bad "pink" LED. they are an old technology and is actually less efficient for plants compared to modern full spectrum LED board utilizing a combination of white and IR LED. i made many experiments using those blurple LED and it was always seems like the plants do not receive enough light.
Yeah, the app is very handy, especially to set the start and end times very conveniently. My only hesitation is that they are pretty pricey compared to what the system offers.
I am obsessed with your channel. Please keep making videos. 🙏
same ay
I truly enjoy your channel. I just brought a LetPot system. Can't wait to see how well it works.
So excited to see this experiment! I invested in an aerogarden harvest as my first hydroponic system ever after watching some of your videos! I planted spinach in it with the paper towel method per your recommendation and they started great! After the first couple harvests, they started looking weak and having yellow spots on the leaves (Google spinach magnesium deficiency). I happened to have some calmagic on hand for some hydroponic tomatoes and adding 2mL of that a week has brought my spinach back to thriving!
That's wonderful. Thanks for sharing your results and remedy.
I wonder if adding some epsom salts to the water would work?
I haven't tried epsom salts before, but it might be worth an experiment!
In the past couple weeks I watched so many of your videos, I'm really, really loving your channel!
It's been a gardening dream of mine to own an Aerogarden unit but they're not available in Europe. I've even been told that while it would work here, bringing a unit to Europe and using it here voids the warranty.
What I gather from your videos is that iDOO systems are OK as an AG alternative. Is this still your opinion? They go for around $100 here (8-pod & 10-pod models). Only LetPot and iDOO systems are available inside EU, except for those weird brands that pop up here and there. Would appreciate your opinion as a seasoned Aerogardener.
Great experiment. I have not tried spinach yet, but from this- i know chives seem to be finicky to germinate, so i did the paper towel method with a bunch of chive seeds last night to see if i can germ on towel first - then plant. i don't know squat about electricity, but if you unplug the pump on the let pot- and then plugged machine back in into a wattage meter would that tell you the wattage of the lights? ( as it would be the only thing drawing juice?) and another thing to add from dollar store- they have a nice handy pruner - as i lose my scissors every day! and i am going to have to say, thanks to you i now own 9 of these machines 😃
For the paper towel method, do you completely seal the plastic bag? Or do you leave a little bit open?
I leave a little bit open on one end.
very interesting experiment!
I too found out Spinach being a cold weather crop does not germinate hydroponically for me. So how long was it from the time you started the wet paper towel method to the day you saw those sprouts that long ? I also planted the Bloomsdale in my Raised Garden Beds last mid September & still have a 2nd crop of spinach even though here on the east coast in zone 7B it has been super COLD. I just covered each bed with a thick bath towel then plastic table cloth or used shower curtain & uncovered as soon as the sun warmed to the high 30's or low 40's & uncovered them. I just want to grow spinach indoors in my Aero garden Bounty Elites really bad!.
Not all seeds germinate at the same time, but we see lots of germination within 5 days.
I'm glad I went with the cheaper idoo over letpot now.
That's a good choice.
It would be interesting to see you use an aerator, to see how that effects growth in the different systems.
Thanks for the suggestion. I will surely try using an aerator and do a side-by-side experiment.
Interesting how different each produced
I would love to know if covering up the spinach seeds in the pots would help with germination. I've been thinking about adding some peat/coir/wet paper towel pressed down the little hole to give good ground contact and a no air pocket. Add the humidity dome and it would then mimic the bag. Have you ever tried something like this? 2nd alternative would be to put the seeds in the pods and then put the pods in the bag. Seeds would then not have to be transferred. No real idea of how it would work. Also have you ever tried to measure the light strength with the different models? Your phone might be accurate enough. I see many now listed with 36W lights. I am wondering if they are actually brighter/grow better? Hopefully that's 2 new video ideas. Thanks always for the experiments!!
You now have a baseline..... 1 out of 26 pots (4%) germinated 1 out of 52 seeds (2%) germinated. Experiment could be done in 1 unit -10 days - same seeds.
Paper towel method is the best :)
Again, just like the other guy, does it tell us which one is better pros and cons of each one.
All those power cables are giving me anxiety ha ha. I just want to zip tie them up so bad.
😀
I noticed that there were no mufga units in the Dec 2023 or Jan 2024 "what i am growing" videos or any of the recent experiment videos. Have there been any issues that may have cause you to stop using them as i was interested in purchasing a mufga that currently on sale on amazon
Mufga is still doing fine. I just have to accommodate a few systems as I am testing them, so I gave a break to Mufga and iDoo systems. I will be bringing Mufga back soon.
@@aerogardenexperiments thanks for answering this
i think it is because Letpot has very bad "pink" LED. they are an old technology and is actually less efficient for plants compared to modern full spectrum LED board utilizing a combination of white and IR LED. i made many experiments using those blurple LED and it was always seems like the plants do not receive enough light.
That's a really good analysis. Thanks for sharing the details.
I think Letpot's pump needs to improve. The pump is so weak
True.
I will try spinach again. Never gitnitnto germinate before in my hydro (uruq brand). I want the LetPot for the app feature 🙄
Yeah, the app is very handy, especially to set the start and end times very conveniently. My only hesitation is that they are pretty pricey compared to what the system offers.