LED Installed, Ebb and Gro in Production

The SuperNova LED installation was fast and simple.  Wish I could say that about the cumbersome reflectors, bulbs and ballasts associated with the HID lights.

Kind of looks like an alien space ship getting ready to land.  The LED has separate and controllable hue settings for blue and red light.  Nice!   We have the LED on the same timer as the HIDs which is controlled by the 240/120v Power Box unit.

The Ebb and Gro system is now in full production.  We transferred 12 plants from the AeroFlo36 today.  We now have more room for Grow 4.  Transfers included Romaine, Basil, Parsley, Roma Tomatoes, Yellow and Red Peppers, and even a few Leeks.

The plants transferred to the Ebb and Gro were from Grow 2 and Grow 3.  We have a pretty equal split of plant species between the STG inserts and Hydroton grow media in this new system.  I will admit, STG is spot on when it comes to preparation time.  Take the insert and put it in the pot, versus, washing Hydroton which took about 20 minutes for 6 pots.  Hint - use the top pots from the system to help rinse the dust out with the hose - the holes in the bottom make a great sieve. You can see that the LED puts off a pretty red / pinkish spectrum.  Compare that to the more yellowish hue (HPS bulb) in the photos below with the Grow 2 Basil, Parsley, and Yellow Pepper plants that are in the PowerGrower. 

An update on our Spinach - all hope is not lost, we now have two sprouts in the Rapid Rooter cubes and one in the Rockwool cubes from Grow 3.  We are hoping to get more sprouts, but after two unsuccessful germination attempts, I will take what I have at this point.

Grow 3, Grow Room Update, AND HARVEST !

Significant changes were made to the grow room in the last few days.  We added a 30 amp circuit to provide 240 volt power to a new Power Box; we split some existing electrical circuits, added some outlets, and eliminated all but one extension cord; we changed the routing and support system for the exhaust fan which kicks on when the room is too hot (due to HID heat output); and we installed a new Ebb and Flow system from C.A.P. called Ebb and Gro.



The Basil plant has been picked several times for recipes over the weekend, not to mention the great salad we made with Buttercrunch and Arugula.  Nice to finally have some rewards for all the hard work.  Grow 3 continues, and it is a toss-up between Rapid Rooters and Rockwool.  STG has been a dud.  I think we may continue with Rockwool due to its ability to hold moisture better than Rapid Rooters even though Rapid Rooters had a faster germination rate.  In the end, Rockwool caught up - and didn't dry out.