Tonight, I conducted a Kratky hydroponics workshop, where I fondly reminisced about my journey over the past three years since @jackspirko introduced me to this innovative method.
In 2020 we built triple-lined vapor barrier wooden boxes to start offering greens subscriptions (our town went months without romaine) so I could charge higher prices.
At the workshop I demonstrated how to pump fresh spring water into the boxes, mix in the nutrients, and plant seedlings. With minimal effort (apart from adjusting lights), we can enjoy and sell fresh greens in just 6weeks.
Swiss chard and cress thrive in this system, while lettuce generally fares well, but requires a bit more airflow. Pac Choi and its relatives also perform excellently.
The biggest challenge over the past three years with this indoor system has been aphids, which typically target the red vein sorrel first. When they appear, it's often difficult to control them for more than a few weeks or a month before they overrun the system. They eventually excrete a sticky substance, necessitating a complete overhaul and restart of the system.
As a result, sustaining a consistent planting schedule has been difficult.
Additionally, I was growing microgreens to diversify our subscriptions and started outsourcing production to another regional producer. While they were time-consuming, I found that spending 24 hours a week listening to podcasts, homeschooling and growing food indoors during Covid was preferable to working in a long-term care facility and witnessing the daily torment of beloved residents.
My undertakings these past few years have resulted in immense practical skills. Cheapest education I’ve ever gotten, but definitely the most I’ve ever fallen on my face.
I was duped by a corporate snake and got into bed with a local arm of the globalists. More on that another time—#grownostr fans are the right audience for that story.
It’s been a whirlwind of irrational exuberance, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
