Indoor Gardening with AeroGarden Aeroponics

How much power does it use?

I wonder how good it would be at growing a certain "other" herb.

first pod coffee now pod plants... nice 'system' only if you can swap new seeds in old pods and reuse it. didn't see anything like that on the website. sounds like you have to repurchase the pods to get new plants.

This looks like a wonderful thing for the kitchen. Anybody around that has used one of those? I would love using one to grow herbs in my kitchen, but I would love some feedback from users before spending the money.

Lucito

Hydroponics and aeroponics are good for 'high value crops', herbs, bell peppers etc. that are worth the extra trouble. I can't imagine that this system couldn't take other seeds in it's pod system. You already have the hard part which is the nutrient circulator and timer. You could even make your own nutrient out of miracle grow and epsom salts, i did this in a hydroponics experiment for a while.

The sad thing is if it requires the proprietary seed pods, then this is another example of the current economic model companies seem to favor: make the initial equipment purchase as cheap as possible and rake in the profits on the consumables. Printers, pod coffee machines, cars, they all follow this now since people make their purchase decisions on the unit price, not the overall cost with the consumables.

It's especially egregious when the company tries to lock out competition for consumables through some legal means, see Lexmark's case against an aftermarket toner cartridge that infringed on 'intellectual property' via the DMCA. Or the recently decided case where US automakers have to release the engine diagnostics codes so that independent car shops can still fix american cars.

It's important to look at the overall cost and repairability. It's probably more expensive up front, but cheaper and more green in the long run.

Does anyone have experience with other aeroponic systems? I understand that unlike hydroponics, aeropoincs doesn't use a growth medium like rockwool to hold the root system, but I'd imagine that you'd need something to suspend a germinating seed. Given that you could get ahold of something like that, I imagine it wouldn't be too hard to fabricate your own pods.

http://www.aerogrow.com/grows.htm
Are you able to just use the device for the artificial sunlight? I'm trying to garden at home with the spare time I have. Do you guys have any recommendations for novice planting?

check it out...

The traditional method of planting (using dirt) really isn't that difficult and it's about $149 cheaper than this alternative. I started getting into this hobby a couple years ago -- the first thing I learned is how easy gardening is. Don't believe me? Put a bucket of dirt outside, and something will start to grow. The plants do all the work, I make sure their home is cozy for them. Nothing more.

Albert,
Regarding artificial sunlight, this last fall, I popped in two regular cfc bulbs into my range hood and placed some potted plants/herbs above the dials at the back of the range (this area gets no natural light). My oregano, parsley and aloe have flourished throughout the winter. No packaging, shipping or plastic 'systems' are necessary.

Hi. I happen to know quite a bit about this product as a friend of mine works for the company. It is a phenomenal product. The purpose of the seed kits, while obviously to add to revenue, is to insure excellent results for the user. All of the seeds that the company sells have been extensively tested to make sure that they grow optimally with the system (you can in fact rely on artificial sunlight if you have a south or west window).

The purpose of the drop-in seed units is primarily to guarantee germination. The underlying objective with the product is make sure that everything is controlled so that anybody can but the thing and achieve awesome results.

If you could see the stuff growing in these units in company's grow lab you would be amazed. When you think about it, 20 bucks to have fresh herbs or lettuce or flowers or vegetables growing in your home for 4 months is a pretty good deal.

This product is going to take the country by storm.

Check out www.astrogrow.com for loads of detailed aeroponic growing info in their "Archive".

It's only 16 inches wide x 21 inches tall (maximum). For $149, that's an expensive patch of oregano.

This was the easiest hydroponic system we have ever set up... we'll see how the produce compare with what we get from the garden out back!

Check out the FirstLook here:
http://www.rainydaymagazine.com/RDM2006/RainyDayGarden/AeroGrow/RainyDayGarden_AeroGrowAssembly.htm

http://www.rainydaymagazine.com/RDM2006/RainyDayGarden/AeroGrow/RainyDayGarden_AeroGrowPlanting.htm

By looking at the pictures in the previous post, it appears that you can replace the pod material with something like rockwool and reseed it. Also, the amount of packaging for the seedpods is ridiculous.

Here's my flickr set of my Aerogarden. I had one pod that didn't work so I dismantled it and put in two seedlings that are now thriving (I think it'd take any kind of "herb").
For the record, aerogarden support mailed me a replacement pod.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hrossvt/sets/72157594153317819/

I bought one of these AeroGardens a few months ago. It worked great, I had beautiful, thriving tomatoes. Then about three months after I bought it, it started leaking...a lot. It ended up ruining the tabletop I had it sitting on. I called the company to ask for help and I was told that they were aware that the early units leaked and offered to replace a part on it. They knew it leaked and still sold it for 150 dollars! In order for me to replace the part, I will have to discard my tomato plant and start new. This was a real disappointment. I wouldn't recommend one of these to anybody.

Its a nice little thing, expencive and im not too sure if that light is goning more hassle than its worth.

Or try a simple leak free aeroponics tomato machine......Bubbler to you and me!!!

Take a 20 Litre bucket with a lid if possible if not find a piece of stiff plastic or wood to cover the bucket, and cut a 4 1/2" hole in it, find a 5" plastic net pot or flower pot and sit it inside the 4.5" hole.

Fill the bucket to the top with tap water and leave it for 12 hours, if it leaks start again, but this mainly evaporates all the calcium in the water. Then add liquid feed to the water as directed on the bottle (use any feed Tomatorite is good and avilble all over the UK) and correct the pH, like an aquarium set up. Or use Hydroponics Solutions, availble in any Hydroshop.

Find an air pump and airstone, the type you find in fish tanks. Put the air stone in the solution.

Fill the net pot with Leca / Clay Balls or loose washed gravel will do if you do not have leca or rockwool.

Put the tomatoe cutting or seedling in the net pot.

The swankey light on top can be replaced by leaving the bucket and plant in a bright sunney spot for as long as it takes.

Thanks for reading!!!

My sister lives in Boulder, where these guys are based, and she tipped me off about them before they brought the product out. I work for a small company that supports urban gardeners, so we were really interested in this product. At first, their website was all about "investor relations" and how they were going to sell gazillions of these things on QVC and go public. The people were not garden people, they were all from the "sell it fast" world, and they had no interest in working with garden companies or letting us buy one to try it out.


Look closely at all the testimonials: at least at first they all seemed to come from one trade show, and be from people who had not actually used the product through a whole growing cycle - all "wow, I could use this" - adding their hype to the hype they were presented with.


We live in capitalism, and our company is also selling things -- my problem with this is that if people spend $150 then find that the promises don't come true, they are more likely to say "I tried growing herbs in my kitchen, it cost $150 and didn't work" ... when in fact they could spend about $3, have a realationship with a plant, and actually get somewhere. I'm afraid they give beginning gardeners a bad start, just like when home depot offers plants at insane prices with no advice, so people spend $100, take those plants home, put 'em in the wrong place and mistreat them, then are disappointed. That hurts us all, because the next season, they'll say "I tried gardening, and this year I think I'll spend my lesiure time and money where there's better chance of success - like a new jet ski," or whatever ....

Rants about plants, rants about plants ....

It's interesting that most of the critisizing comments above are coming from people who actually have not used the AeroGarden themselves. I have personally been using 2 AeroGarden units that I bought from the AeroGarden Store (Hydroponic-Home-Garden.com). They have performed up to every single expectation and every promise that has been made. I have harvested a complete cycle of Salad Greens, Cilantro, Basil, Dill, Cherry Tomatoes, and have even expiremented with growing my own seeds (Bell Peppers) and I would have spent much more than $150 buying all of the stuff it produced. Besides, it's not just the production factor...it is fun, just like gardening in the dirt, and like any other hobby, sometimes it's worth the extra money to be entertained. No complaints on my end.

is this product capible of growing clinical marijuana?

I saw this in a mall in Colorado. The display models all had things growing and it seemed to be working fine. But I have a SERIOUS problem with buying a product and not being able to do what I want with it.

I want the freedom to decide what I want to grow. I want to have instructions and support from the company to grow whatever I damn well please.

I won't buy any product when I'm locked into continuing to buy products from them in the future. Not that I wouldn't buy them from them first were there a choice, but without choices if I decide to stop giving this company money for whatever reason. (Bad customer support, find out the CEO is sleeping with my wife, the company went bankrupt) I'll have a $150 brick in my home.

So until I know that I can put together my own seed pods, and nutrients packs and get lightbulbs from multiple other sources this product is not viable to me and it shouldn't be to anyone without a certain level of completely wasteable income.

Thanks for all the input, especially about having to buy the pods from this company only -- you have saved me $144.00!!! I'll keep looking for an alternative.

This is pretty spendy for such a small unit. If you are just interested in the learning experience it probably is worth it. If you are more interested in actually being able to harvest a real crop, and bigger plants, try something like an Astrogrow aeroponic system. They also have a substantial amount of information about systems and aeroponic growing.

www.astrogrow.com

You know you can make one of these units yourself for a few bucks. The most expensive thing would be the lights. If you are growing things like lettuce and herbs you don't need high powered lights at all just a couple of full spectrum or growLux by GE. Most of the parts you can find at home depot. If you like tinkering that is the way to go and you would save yourself a quite a bit of cash. Aeroponics(company) I hope you are reading this, listen to your customer they will be loyal if you put out a product that they want. When you produce the next model, interchangeable lights and pod chambers. Think long term.

This page is like all the rest put up by Aerogarden to promote themselves.

Aerogarden you guys lied to us all. In no way does the Aerogarden grow 5 times faster.
In fact the plants are all under size compared to the ones I planted in dirt at the same time!
This system over waters the plants roots causing many problems in addition to nutrition burn!

is anyone else using one of these in uk i bought one and used it with voltage converter to drop volt down to 120v and the vobertor broke so got another one and same thing happened again was also wondering what is the volatage of these is it multi 120-240?

Steven in UK,
Notice that the bulbs state that they run on 115v.
So if you are trying to hard wire the lights yourself...
You might want to crack it open and see if there is a transformer inside or test the voltage with a meter.

People, Anyone with a little inteligence can devise your own seed pods after examining the ones provided with the kit. With a little research and perhaps some trial and error you could also find a sutable substitute liquid plant food for the proprietary nutrient tablets, that's where the internet is handy. People that have come up with working substitutions can post their findings and save the rest of us some work. I also believe that I can devise my own working copy of the system itself for much less than the retail price.

Thank you, Carl, for starting the obvious. Now could you point to a link of this information that can theoretically be found on the internet?

I don't mean to be rude, but the point I was making is that all the parts of the system are proprietary and AFAIK there are no such sites to provide information.

If all it takes a "little intelligence" as you put it, find a site with complete and thorough instructions. Or build your own to start a community for this purpose. At the time of my previous post I had done research into this and had found nothing useful.

I'm not saying that the information isn't there. And I would be genuinely interested in reading what is available if you can point me in the right direction.

But as I said before "until I know that I can put together my own seed pods, and nutrients packs and get lightbulbs from multiple other sources this product is not viable to me."

Ditto the last. Have grown many veggies under lights and set out robust plants in the garden. Would like more info (directions) to sites that show complete fruition under lights.

I was just reading over some more information from the AeroGarden Store (www.hydroponic-home-garden.com) and they have a new seed kit that is coming that lets you grow your own seeds. Actually, I'm not sure if it is something the manufacturer themselves are putting out, or if it's a solution this retailer has come up with. It's about time...they should have known from the start that forcing customers to use the "proprietary" seed pods would cause problems for them long term. Allowing owners to expiriment with their own stuff will be a big step forward.

I received an Aerogarden for Christmas. We're rich with herbs right now, as the AG has been performing as advertised. It's frightfully easy to use, the herbs are amazing and prolific.

I just received a kit from the company that gives you everything you need to use your own seeds for a custom garden, and instructions on how to use the system for the garden you're desiring, as there are preset conditions on the unit.

I couldn't be happier with the AG. I only wish I had lots of them so I could have strawberries, tomatoes, basil, and salad greens, all at the same time. I live in the Pacific Northwest, and there is a dreadful lack of fresh veggies here much of the year, that's why I love the AG. I think it's worth the money, for someone like me who is a freak for fresh veggies and fruit (and who is striving to avoid any produce grown in other countries).

I was interested in this gardening system for all of the hyped up ideals the commercial pushed at me, but I think I will try the "old fashioned" way before shelling out part of my mortgage payment for a futuristic pod designed to pump out plant matter. That being said, does anyone have a suggestion for a "Kitty Proof" garden setup? :-) Thanks!

Yikes!

Check this out before you buy!

http://www.newstarget.com/021632.html

Has anyone seen the strawberry kit that AeroGarden put out recently? I have seen a few blog posts at aerogardenstrawberries.com but not much else. How many strawberries do you think the new kit would yield? -G

I have an aerogarden. Has anyone tried to grow marijuana using this system. Comments, please. Thank you.

I received the aerogarden as a gift. At first everything grew well, then about the time I was ready to harvest, several of the herbs were just covered with aphids. Very unappetizing. I tried rinsing them off, but dozens more would appear in a day. None of my houseplants had aphids so I don't know where the bugs came from. I tried planting the plants in a soil growing medium but none of them did well. Eventually the aphids got everything but the chives. Today I dismantled the unit and stored it for the time being. If I use it again I think I will need to find a room with no plants in it and a door which can be tightly shut. Maybe putting the unit in a clear plastic bag would work to keep the bugs out. I was very dissappointed in the results of my aerogarden experience.

You can use coupon code GROW at http://www.totalvac.com/aerogarden_indoor_garden.htm and get 10% of an AeroGarden plus receive free shipping

I received an aerogarden for a gift and was really excited...right up my alley. Then I realized the "catch" about the seeds and nutrients. I figured, it was a gift, this is cool & I will just enjoy it. Then it started "growing" white stuff. I called the company, they told me to take it all apart, use clorox to run thru it and then rinse it well and try again. It happened after a few weeks again. They told me to use an antifungal called Serenade in it and it would kill whatever was in there since it was probably a fungus. Yuck but ok. Well, it has seemed to kill whatever was in there, along with my plants. I may be trying, as you guys suggested, planting my own seeds and using my own nutrients but I can't afford to keep buying their $20 seed. Anyone interested in buying a cheap aero garden?

myhawk: yes I'm interested. Email me at treehugger[dot]noush[at]spamgourmet[dot]com if you're still selling...

I was watching TV and got sucked in to by AG. Thankfully I found this site before I bought one. First... WOW 150 bucks and second not having any basic control on what i can grow, I don't think so! Thanks to all of you who posted their comments. Has anyone had any luck growing lettuces inside? I live in Florida and lettuces seem to hate the weather here. A shame. Once again thanks and have a good one.

I bought one, the purpose was two fold. I like to garden and explore options for handicapped people to garden, second is I do a lot of experimentation with hydro.
I have the aero in my office, and so far it's been clean and operates like they said. is this an Aeroponics unit no, this is hydro. Are there problems, yep. like any system you will occasionally have pump problems, you will have germination problems and if you contaminate the system, bacterial and fungal problems. but it did work, and I have been giving away herbs for weeks now.

The kit is not for people in the hobby, clearly you can build a cheaper system, and a bigger one at that. I can build a system just like it for $50, with another 30 for the pump, and put the remaining money into the light and have a 32 station system. but thats not really the point in my view.

I wanted a clean quick garden for my office, not a hydro production unit. I have those in my green house. I wanted to see how difficult it was to use and how appropriate this might be for older people in a convolecent home or people with less than sharp mental abilities. And I wanted to see how well it stood up to my designs.

So far I have been happy with the unit. If your older and frail or just very busy, can't garden because of your back, climate, live in a tiny 20th floor apartment and you want to garden something edible, this unit will work for you.

I bought one, the purpose was two fold. I like to garden and explore options for handicapped people to garden, second is I do a lot of experimentation with hydro.
I have the aero in my office, and so far it's been clean and operates like they said. is this an Aeroponics unit no, this is hydro. Are there problems, yep. like any system you will occasionally have pump problems, you will have germination problems and if you contaminate the system, bacterial and fungal problems. but it did work, and I have been giving away herbs for weeks now.

The kit is not for people in the hobby, clearly you can build a cheaper system, and a bigger one at that. I can build a system just like it for $50, with another 30 for the pump, and put the remaining money into the light and have a 32 station system. but thats not really the point in my view.

I wanted a clean quick garden for my office, not a hydro production unit. I have those in my green house. I wanted to see how difficult it was to use and how appropriate this might be for older people in a convolecent home or people with less than sharp mental abilities. And I wanted to see how well it stood up to my designs.

So far I have been happy with the unit. If your older and frail or just very busy, can't garden because of your back, climate, live in a tiny 20th floor apartment and you want to garden something edible, this unit will work for you.

Has anyone tried to use the AeroGarden to grow some Cannabis? Is there a way to make your own pods. maybe someone has tried and has a solution. Please email me at dcast745@yahoo.com

My correspondence in May '07 with AeroGrow (regarding using one's own seed):

> > Hi,
> > I am a seed saver and grow many heirloom varieties, and although I love the available seed kits you offer, I know many of my my most prized heirloom varieties will not be available in the seed kits.
> > Will you be selling "blank plugs" that I can put my own seeds in and grow in your Aerogrow unit?
> > Thanks!
> > Chris

Hello Chris,

Thank you for your email.

That is great that you are a seed saver. We have just the item for people like yourself to grow those special heirloom varieties. It is called the Master Gardener Kit. This kit will allow gardeners to use their own seeds, and will provide empty pods, nutrient tablets, and a thorough instruction booklet.

The Master Gardener Kit is now available for $39.95, and can be ordered online or by calling 1-800-476-9669.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you and happy AeroGardening!

Paul Grajek
AeroGrow Customer Care