Hey everyone! This is my second crop grown hydroponically and I was hoping to get some advice from those with more experience than me. I'm growing habeņeros and I think they look pretty healthy, however it has taken them about 5 months to get to that size and they're just starting to flower. So I'm concerned with their growth rate. Last year it took 8 months to get 5 small fruits between 3 plants. Last year one of my problems was insufficient lighting so now I use a
cfl with the reflector you can see behind the plants. My pH was also about 8 so now every time I change the water (every 4 weeks) I lower it to just under 6. I'm using a
drip system with clay aggregate which runs for 15 minutes every hour. They have a 16 hour photoperiod (which was recently reduced to 12 to induce flowering) under a
CFL advertised as having a daylight spectrum along with indirect sun light from a nearby window. And I'm using botanicare
nutrient solution. So, does anyone see anything that I'm doing wrong or could change so that my plants grow at a normal rate? There are a few things I'm concerned about, but not really sure if they matter. I imagine my water has very little oxygen. The roots extend down into the reservoir and form clumps. I'm using city water and not very sure of the chemical content. My plants are very close together. The grow bed is rather small. Thanks in advance for all your help!