I learned an important lesson this week.  Don't mix renovations with hydroponics.  Don't think that you can get away with it.  It just doesn't work.  It's similar to dating your best friend's ex... you just shouldn't try it.

Here's the situation...

We're renovating the house at the moment.  We've been gutting and reworking some of the rooms.  This weekend, I decided to be ambitious.  I thought that we'd attempt the bedroom and the guest room simultaneously.   Since we planned on installing new bamboo floors, this meant that we needed to empty both rooms. It's tricky to empty two bedrooms in a three bedroom house at the same time.  Most importantly, the guest room is where the plants have been living.

We initially moved the aeroponic unit into the living room.  This was fine for the first few hours, but it wasn't going to last very long.  Although I really do love aeroponics, and I think it's a great technique... It does have some limitations.  For example, since the roots are free; they don't have much tolerance for a system shutdown.  A normal plant has soil as a "reservoir" for dry times.  Aeroponic plants have no such cushion.

I knew that the plants would need the pump reconnected within a few hours, or there would be problems.  I set up a temporary solution.  This wasn't a wise idea.  In attempting to move the unit, we encountered a big problem.  Hydroton was spilled.  Water was spilled.  Plants suffered.  I have regrets.

We'll be restarting the hydroponics within a week or two.  Although I mourn the loss of our plants, it will be refreshing to start from scratch with the lessons that have been learned.  Here are a few thoughts for the next go:

• We'll grow everything from seed.  We unknowingly brought in aphids when we transplanted outside plants into the aeroponic system last time.
• We'll plant fewer tomato plants.  I never realized how huge they can get.  We'll plant one or two, not the five from last time.
• We'll be starting everything in the MegaGarden.  I like the way the 125W fluorescent works for young seedlings.
• Although I haven't made any decision, I'm investigating strawberry varieties.  I know it will take a while, but I want some strong plants that are everbearing.

It's been a long time, and I'm finally able to report that the tomato plants have started to think about producing actual tomatoes!

But seriously... The tomato plants have grown huge.  Even with the recently extended frame structure, they are reaching close to the light again.  Take a look at this photo:

We've been trimming the tomato plants back, and removing some of the poor growth.  However, they're still huge.  Everything is doing well.  Despite their huge size, do remember that these plants were mere seeds in the middle of April.  Realistically, they are about 9 weeks old.  It's been an active 9 weeks.  We've continued adding supports as they have grown. It's a lot of twine and Velcro.

Here's the really good news, blooms are starting to form.  Blooms mean that tomatoes can't be too far behind.  Take a look at this one:

I have no time estimate on the tomatoes, but it's nice to see that they are in the mood to produce.  I'll post a followup, as always.

Although it's not going to be for a while... The next time I tear down the TurboGarden for a full refit, I'm planning on making some modifications.  I've found that the roots of the tomato plants are "finding their way" into the water return fittings.  This normally wouldn't be a big deal, but the roots are dense enough that they actually cause water to "build up" in the top tray (due to lack of drainage).  When I have the chance, I plan on making a second drain in the unit, to ease such problems.  I'll also put smaller plants adjacent the drain, rather than big honking tomatoes with big honking roots. 

In related news, the basil is doing fabulously.  We originally weren't sure what to do with the last "slots" in the TurboGarden, so we planted some herbs.  Here's a shot of the basil growing happily:

Here's the news from the growing room this week...

The pH is quite stable.  I've gotten it down to "business as usual".  Here's my current thinking on the pH control for the aeroponic TurboGarden:

• Ideally, the plants would like a pH of about 6.5
  
• The plants continually lower the pH in their normal life cycle (tomato, strawberry, eggplant).
  
• My water at the house is approximately pH 6.8-6.9.
• I no longer adjust the wate's pH down when making a water change; the plants will take care of it themselves.  The pH isn't far outside the ideal range, so I can get away with it.
• Every day, I check the pH.  I'll usually add about 20ml of pH increaser at a time, as necessary.  Since the main reservoir is approximately 25 gallons, this is a reasonable amount to add.

The tomato plants are honking huge.  As you may remember, I expanded the lighting support frame a few weeks ago.  I added almost two extra feet to accommodate the rapid growth of the tomato plants.  Here's a photo from this morning:

The tomato plants are huge (approaching 5' tall).  We've actually been pruning them back to keep them from getting in the lights "burn range".  Oddly enough, they have not flowered yet.  I'm expecting that when they finally do flower, we'll be looking at a huge crop of tomatoes.

The strawberries are fruiting frequently.  We're probably getting about three berries per week from each plant.  That may not sound like much, but they are still immature.  My older strawberry plants (in the back yard) produce a far greater quantity.  However, they do have a two year advantage over the aeroponic youngsters.

The eggplants are growing.  No eggplants yet.  The herbs are looking herb-like.

Our lettuce is still doing well, but is not long for this world.  The time of the great cutting is approaching quickly.  It's just as well, aphids have been a continual problem in the MegaGarden (they originally arrived on the backs of the strawberry plants that we transplanted).  Although the Organocide has helped, the aphids are tenacious.  Not for much longer though, as we're about to cut down their whole habitat.

This week has been rather uneventful in the hydroponics room.  Things are going well.  The tomato plants still haven't started producing tomatoes, but they sure are huge.  They're over 4' tall now, so when they finally start blooming, we should have some real production.

The strawberries are producing.  It's not a lot yet, but they're still young plants; so it makes sense.

Fair Warning:  Chinese eggplants have thorns!  I didn't know that.  The domestic eggplants are friendly, but the Chinese ones are spikey. 

Regarding the aeroponic bed:

The pH steadily declines though the week.  I've come to realize that this is normal, and nothing is wrong.  I don't have enough of a biology background to explain it; but I do know enough to regulate it.  I still check the pH daily, and adjust (upward) as needed.  For reference, the Milwaukee pH meter is still terrible.  I don't even use it anymore.  It's officially branded a piece-of-crap.  I've gone back to doing the "color change" chemical tests exclusively.

Here's the latest photo of the aeroponic bed: