I feel that it's time to admit a mistake. A personal failing, on my part. I did something bad.
I tended the garden while I was hungry. I regret to report that several of the lettuces have suffered substancial... sampling.
With the exception of taking a bit of an early harvest at the expense of the letti, things are doing well. Everybody survived the transplanting into the hydroton. The MegaGarden is jam-packed at the moment. I'm stalling on the aero as long as possible, and I'll probably make some room in the comming weeks by rendering innocent lettuce into salad. Mmmmm. Salad.
I've got the larger tomato plant (#10) climbing the lightstand, and it seems to like it. I hate to start up the aero for just a single plant. Just as a reference for everyone, the 125W flouroescent bulb costs me about $8 per month. The 400W High Pressure Sodium bulb costs me about $30 per month. It's a good deal, provided you have enough plants to make it worth it.
Truthfully, I thought I'd be further along at this point. I didn't realize how terribly slowly strawberries grow. At this rate, I expect fresh ripe strawberries in about a million years. I don't know how long it's supposed to take, because it seems that everybody else is getting them at the nursery, rather than growing from seed.
Here's an overview of the plants. The eggplant is in the foreground, strawberries on the left, lettuce on the right.
Lettuce jungle.
Keeping with my promise of solid record keeping, here's this week's chart:
| Plant | Type | Status |
| #01 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.0" tall. Rockwool cube has been placed into a hydroton (small grain) filled aeroponic pot. |
| #02 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.0" tall. Rockwool cube has been placed into a hydroton (small grain) filled aeroponic pot. |
| #03 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.0" tall. Rockwool cube has been placed into a hydroton (small grain) filled aeroponic pot. |
| #04 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.0" tall. I ran out of space, so this one is still just rockwool.
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| #05 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.5" tall. The largest of the strawberries. Rockwool cube has been placed into a hydroton (small grain) filled aeroponic pot. |
| #06 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.0" tall. I ran out of space, so this one is still just rockwool. |
| #07 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.0" tall. I ran out of space, so this one is still just rockwool. |
| #08 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 3.5" tall. The second-largest of the strawberries. Rockwool cube has
been placed into a hydroton (small grain) filled aeroponic pot. |
| #09 | Alexandria Alpine Strawberries | Roughly 2.5" tall. Rockwool cube has been placed into a hydroton (small grain) filled aeroponic pot. |
| #10 | Andrew Rahart's Jumbo Heirloom Tomato | Approximately 16" long (it's not standing straight anymore, as it's tied to the lightstand). |
| #11 | Delicious Heirloom Tomato | Previously killed through personal stupidity. |
| #12 | Bambino Baby Eggplant | It's about 7" tall, and is looking big and leafy. Leaves are approximately 4-5" long.
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| #13 | Monet's Garden Lettuce
| Approximately 14" tall (if it stood). Replanted into a standard 5" pot (I needed the aero pots free). |
| #14 | Monet's Garden Lettuce | Approximately 14" tall (if it stood). Replanted into a standard 5" pot (I needed the aero pots free). |
| #15 | Monet's Garden Lettuce | Approximately 15" tall (if it stood). Replanted into a standard 5" pot (I needed the aero pots free). I broke a leaf during transplant. Tasty. |
| #16 | Monet's Garden Lettuce | Approximately 12" tall (if it stood). Replanted into a standard 5" pot (I needed the aero pots free). |
| #17 | Lime Basil
| Looks healthy. About 5.0" tall. I wanted to give it a dedicated pot, but ran out of room. Since it's still fairly small, I'm hoping to move it later. |
| #18 | Delicious Heirloom Tomato | Approximately 12" tall. Replanted into a standard 5" pot. |