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My first Transplant


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Old 03-06-2010, 09:41 PM
eduardomachado eduardomachado is offline
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Default My first Transplant

Here are my lettuces and parsley... Its my first time using the hydroponic NFT I made... well its the first time ever lol...

The PH is 5.6 and the PPM 965...

here are some pics...

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Old 03-07-2010, 03:53 AM
GpsFrontier GpsFrontier is offline
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looks like you moved it from the carport to the fenced in area you built, and looks as though you'll have a lot of lettuces and parsley to eat. I like lettuces for a lot of things also, though I don't think we would be able to go through more than 1 or 2 heads a week at most. But with that many plants growing in all different stages of growth you should have a ready supply all the time.

I'm not familiar with growing either lettuces or parsley in hydro yet, but the only concern I would have with setting the rockwool cubes directly on the bottom of the tubing is the roots may become too waterlogged in a NFT. Like a sponge rockwool will absorb as much water as it can until it's saturated, and the cubes will never get a chance to dry out at all if the nutrients/water are flowing all the time. Not sure if you were already considering it, but it might be a good idea to place them in baskets that hang just above the water, with the roots dangling down in the nutrient/water flow, once the roots are long enough.
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Old 03-07-2010, 08:01 AM
eduardomachado eduardomachado is offline
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Thanks for the suggestion GPS, but thats not rockwool... the ones I started on rockwool.. were the ones that died this is like a foam... its called hydroculture oasis ore something like that... its what commercial growers use here in Puerto Rico, directly on the tube... it hold swater but not that much as rockwool....

All the seeds were planted at the same time... but there are different kinds of lettuces, that's why they grow at different speed

We planted for us and our family and close friends... to share
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Old 03-07-2010, 08:08 AM
eduardomachado eduardomachado is offline
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Forgot to tell, yes I moved them outside, they are in a carport covered with greenhouse plastic, just the top... I may have to cover all sides because of the wind....
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Old 03-07-2010, 05:21 PM
GpsFrontier GpsFrontier is offline
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Quote:
this is like a foam... its called hydroculture oasis ore something like that... its what commercial growers use here in Puerto Rico
Would you have a link to the hydroculture oasis cubes that you are using? I am always interested in looking for more information, and more/better materials to use for more options in building and growing hydroponically. But I don't think I am finding exactly what you are using. I keep finding a manufacturer called "Oasios" that makes rockwool growing media, or links to company's selling hydroponic systems for growing orchids and tropical plants for some reason.

P.S. Look forward to seeing your plants grow.
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Last edited by GpsFrontier; 03-07-2010 at 05:33 PM.
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Old 03-07-2010, 06:10 PM
eduardomachado eduardomachado is offline
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this is what we are using....

Buy Hydroponic Supplies at Lee's Tropicals - Tropical Plant Propagation: Oasis Rootcubes - Case - 20 Sheets - 104 Cells/Sheet
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Old 03-08-2010, 01:30 PM
eduardomachado eduardomachado is offline
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look at this video, that's the oasis YouTube - Hydroponic Lettuce
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Old 03-09-2010, 06:31 PM
eduardomachado eduardomachado is offline
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Damm Bird... eat or damaged more than half my lettuces... luckly I dint plant all I had just in case something happened.. It did...!!!

Now I covered all sides with shade cloth.... Ill post pics this weekend...

The plants that the birds dint mess up... seems to like the system.... some of the lettuces are are starting to show the color they should be it would look colorful.... the ones I have inside still no color any were... so they seem to like the system so far......

One question I have... as the oasis keeps wet all the time... its supposed to hold air in it too... should I use a timer to let it dry a little more and get more air?

like 45 on 15 off or so?
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Old 03-09-2010, 08:16 PM
GpsFrontier GpsFrontier is offline
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Quote:
Damm Bird... eat or damaged more than half my lettuces...
Ahh.. man, bummer. We have a lot of birds around here but no problems with them yet. Although if my plants are too close to the ground without any screening around them, the rabbits here will get them if there within reach.
Quote:
One question I have... as the oasis keeps wet all the time... its supposed to hold air in it too... should I use a timer to let it dry a little more and get more air?
Well, this was my original concern with the cubes sitting directly in the tubes. The plants will do better if the roots are not completely saturated all the time. Although as I understand it, lettuces plants don't mind that as much as other plants. That's one reason why they do very well in the water culture type systems (like in the youtube video you posted). A timer will work to a point the way you have your system set up right now for that purpose, but once the roots grow outside the oasis cube, it wont work well. The cube holds moisture so the roots inside the cube will be fine, but the roots outside the cube will dry out rapidly.

When the pump is shut off, it will take time before all the water is drained off the bottom of the tubes (unless you have it set at a steep angle). So the roots that are sticking outside of the cube will get some moisture before drying out, but at the same time the cubes will be sitting in the water also. So the cubes wont actually have a chance to dry out until all the water is off the bottom of the tube, and that is when the roots outside the cube will start drying out rapidly (like in 5 minutes or so). That is why I suggested inserting baskets into the openings, and placing the cubes in the baskets once the roots are long enough to reach the bottom of the tubes. I would just want to make sure the baskets rest around 1/2 inch above the water level.

Also if you can close up the openings around the base of the plants you wont have as much evaporation, and the dangling roots will be able to hold onto the moisture better. Mainly because you will be helping to trap humidity in the tubes where the roots are. This would be much easier to accomplish using baskets in the openings. It would also help keep any light out of the openings, cutting down on algae growth.

P.S. Thanks for the link to the Oasis Rootcubes, I was not able to tell what material they made of from the description. But I have been meaning to e-mail them the question, just hadn't gotten around to it yet (maybe tonight). It seems like it will be just about the same cost as the rockwool cubes at $8.95 for 100 1" cubes. The oasis cubes brake down to $6.97 each when ordering 20 sheets of 104 cubes. It probably will be a buck or two higher when only ordering one sheet at a time, bringing up the actual cost to just about the same as the rockwool cubes. It also says it Holds almost 40 times it's weight in water, so I am not sure how much better at aeration it is than regular rockwool. But like I said, I plan to e-mail them soon. I will probably buy some the next time I need starter cubes, that way I can compare them.

I know you already fixed your pH level, but I just thought I would fallow up and post what they replied to my question (I got the reply Monday morning).

My question
"There is some confusion in the proper pH level for tomato's in the information I have found online. I see recommendations as low as 5.5, and as high as 6.5, Can you tell me what the correct information is? Is it variety specific? Also will the flowers fall off and leaves start to curl if it is off by .5 or so?"

There reply
"The ranges you have been seeing are normal. Many people attempt to get their pH down to exactly .1 or .2 from what they believe is ideal for whichever crop they are growing. Sometimes this can harm more than help. Plants respond to a range of usable pH which inter-relates to nutrient availability. This means that nutrition is available within the range of 5.5-6.5. When you are mixing up your nutrients, if your initial reading after mixing is within that range don't bother adjusting the pH as sometimes the adjusting products used can cause some issues, with nutrient availability. Tomatoes will feed within that range well, just be sure to supplement calcium to prevent blossom end rot. Fluctuation of your pH can occur, and this is a damaging occurrence so help prevent this by using the best possible starting water, and the least amount of pH adjusting solution necessary."

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