Since my fascination commenced, the lighting technology has evolved and the old (very hot and energy sucking) incandescent lighting has given way to cool running, low energy LEDs. And in the last few years the LEDs have come down in cost, and quality has improved.
A couple of years ago, we moved out of town (it WAS less townish when I built there in 1993, things change). This new-to-us home came with a "spare" fully functioning, albeit rough, double-wide mobile home. A 1982 model. Great Man cave.!!
I'm converting one bedroom into a grow room. With small window unit AC.
I've tried "square foot gardening" with limited success. Things go great with veggies until the Texas summer heat arrives, then no matter how well you water them, the intense summer heat stops veggie production. Nice green plants, no flowering/no fruit. Until late September to early Dec.
3-4 years ago, I bought a nice pawnshop Husquavarna (sp?) tiller, fenced off (deer, rabbits, etc) a section of nice bottom land soil at my former home, enriched the soil with alpaca "beans" and peat moss. Ran a long hose to this garden. Had good success, again summer slowed it way down. (Then sold the place!!)
Last year, at new home, I did container gardening with buckets on a harbor freight wagons to move into shade on hot days. Same results. The heat stops production.
Okay, enough rambling, and build-up. Here are some pics...
Amazon sourced. A 600 watt and a 300 watt LED light.
The 600 has switch for the 2 growing modes. Different light spectrum/color.
Some of these Pak Choi lettuce seeds are tiny!!
Using cheap Home Depot $7 mortar mixing tubs for nutrient container. 8 gallon.
And cut up one inch foam board for tubby top panels.
I have one LARGE mortar tub for tomatoes. 23 gallons. Mounted low since tomatoes can get very tall. Grow lights hang from ceiling.
I'm lining walls with cheap Mylar $2 "space blankets". This is commonly seen with "wacky weed" growers, so can't be bad for veggies, right?
Seeds are sprouted in nutrient solution soaked grow cubes for a few days under an LED light with a timer. 18 hours on/ 6 hours off for now.
These 2 tables will hold the smaller tubs for lettuce, after cleaning off my set up paraphernalia. Grow lights are very bright pink lights.
Scale for measuring nutrients, air stones for bubbling in nutrient tubs.
Multi port air pump for air stones (not required but will help keep nutrients and oxygen churned up in tubs)
Net pots for grow cube transplants. Need to cut perfectly sized holes in Styrofoam panels for these net cups. Proper spacing between is important.
Gotta get the PH level to the correct level for plants. 6.2-6.5 is best. Our tap water is around 8... really high. Special LED lightshade glasses. These LEDs can give you a headache trying to work in the same room for long.
Sprouting tray. Nearly done with this stage.
5 days of sprouting time with this pic. Color rendition off due to grow light.
I better get busy suspending my grow lights.!!!! And filling tubs with water and nutrients!!
Well, that's about it for now. More pics in a few weeks, with plant progress.
(Previous blog post on mini-split AC...waiting for AC guy to make final connections and start up.)
Adios...!!
Latest progress...
The tomatoes have landed...in their permanent home, under the 600 watt blue grow light.
(Had to order one more 300 watt LED grow light light...too many seedlings.!!)
