AeroGarden Grow Tips For Growing Extra Large Nugs of Legal Medical Marijuana Pt.2 - The Cons

I have completed three grows using this system with wonderful results.

Cons

1. Lighting- The lighting that comes with the AeroGarden is pretty much garbage by itself. For the first few weeks it will be fine for your plants but after that you will find the plants stretching for more light and this will make your yield smaller. I suggest buying a nice HPS or Metal Halide kit and using your Aerogarden light for the side angles. Also, you can add some CFLs on the side as this was the most convenient way for me. Don't worry because the cash that you spend on the extra lights will pay for itself and then some on your 1st harvest.

2 Spacing of the Pods- There are spaces for seven pods on the Aerogarden, but this is irrelevent because they are way too close to let each of your babies reach its maximum growth and yield potential. I wouldn't grow more than 3 at time, otherwise it will be a battle for light regardless of the side lighting. The top left, the top right, and the center bottom are the pods that should be used. These 3 techniques should guarantee that you have three strong plants growing at the same time;

A. Start with seven plants from seeds and hope that you have at least 3 females.

B. Clones make it easy. This may not be an option for the beginner, but it is the best guarantee for success.

C. Get seeds that are feminized. They are great for the beginning grower (any grower for that matter) because they are guaranteed to be girls most of the time.

3 The resevoir is shared by all the plants- The main problem here is when you're sexing your plants. You will most likely have to cut roots because after the 5th week they will be tangled. It's not the worst thing imaginable but you have to be careful. I tried using the method that KoolKat recommended with fantastic results. Lift the pod tray out of the water and seperate the root clusters by hand as much as you can (someone should hold the tray while doing this). Then slowly cut away the rest of the tangles (don't worry, the plants will be O.K.). Lift out the male plants and discard them (save the pods though!). The remaining females should be lifted out of their pods and be soaked in nutrient-free distilled water for about ten minutes to free up any pieces of root that are from the other plants. While soaking, gently massaging the root cluser will help loosen up these little pieces. Replace the plants into their new homes (top left, top right, bottom center) by wrapping the root cluster in some Saran wrap to guide it through the small pod hole. KoolKat (and his girlfriend ) uses a plastic bag. Either way. Obviously, you should remove the Saran wrap or plastic bag once the roots are through. It is very important to clean the sponge filter really good in front of the water pump weekly from this point on, because tiny pieces of the roots wil fall into the resevoir and can easily block the pump.

The sponge is the X-factor of this device

The little resevoir also means that the PH and PPM will go up and down often. You need to be on your PH like a eagle. Check it daily, if not more. Keeping your PH between 5.6 and 6.2 will deliver excellent outcomes, although regular tap water works for me. Just make sure you don't do constant PH adjusting because I don't think this system likes that too much. Changing the fluids once a week is what I do instead of the recomended two weeks because waiting 2+ weeks can make a PH and PPM difficult to handle for rookies. So basically, It's harder to regulate the longer it is between resevoir changings.


I am now on my 4th growing session with the modified AeroGarden. My last grow cycle yielded to me about 400 grams. Overall, it's a nice little contraption, and I must admit, I've grown quite fond of it. Be sure to clean the heck out of it after every cycle. I like to use Fox farm nutes with it because the results are amazing. Make sure the first couple of week to cut the dosages in half and exchange the resevoir every week instead every other week.

My goal is to help you AeroGardeners have a plentiful harvest of fat and wonderful legal medical BUDS.

You've read the cons, now click the link below to see the pros of the AeroGarden!

Good luck, and may your harvests be bountiful!!