As an aquarium keeper I am pretty sure that low oxygen levels is more favorable for algae than high oxygen levels. The higher the DO then less mold and algae can survive. Circulation also plays a part in that too. I have done this same experiment with vastly different results on my channel. The aeration needs to be more powerful. And once the stone becomes encased in a root mass, it looses its effectiveness drastically. The oxygen exchange happens at the surface with the agitation that the rising and popping bubbles create. The large bubbles themselves do not put O2 into the water column by simply being in the water. They need to rise to the surface and cause a lot of agitation. What happens mostly with aeration is the CO2 in the air reacts with carbonates in the water and creates carbonic acid, lowering the PH. The fluctuating PH and CO2 levels in the water is what drives algae growth. Not the oxygen.
Damn, I’m honoured to have you in this comment section and know you watched the video! Huge fan of your channel! That said, thanks for dropping this knowledge on me and the other viewers! 🙏 Great stuff, this helps me a lot.
Creative Genius Productions that’s a pretty typical method. But usually you only need an airstone for that if it’s all organic fertilizer so the bacteria can stay alive. But with a flowing system it usually already has plenty of air contact. Unless it’s just a trickle flow.
@@GrowingAnswers i have 3 dwc buckets right now, all three started differently tho. 1 i started with the seed in hydroton alone, the second i germinated and then put in the hydroton and the 3rd one i prematurely put in the hydroton. i don't have any problems with the first and second one but the third one burst out of its seed but the root didn't grow, how do i troubleshoot this?
I just finished a 3-month Kratky lettuce project and I had zero algae. I was VERY careful to block out all light and keep temps around 75 though. Maybe these white buckets get too much light inside?
Thank you for posting this. Many forget that Prof. Kratky didn't develop this system to compete with electrical systems, but to make it possible for people to grow low cost, low maintenance food when electricity wasn't available or was cost prohibitive. The lower costs, ease of use, low maintenance and low impact of the Kratky system make it perfect for many of us who don't have the mechanical talent or financial resources of others. Well done.
I watched another Video and the Lady was growing Pepper Plants with and without aeration. She had her Buckets covered with Aluminum Foil. The Plants were similar, the aerated one being bigger but the Root system on the aerated one was quite a bit bigger. But the biggest difference was the Peppers were over twice the size in the aerated Plant with the larger Root system. I don't know if it was the Aluminum Foil blocking the light, but she had NO problems with Algae. A definite difference in the outcome of the Peppers with the Air Pump!
Tikki O's video is great! The foil was likely an attempt to block light getting into her reservoirs. Her air pump plant did take considerably longer to ripen its fruit compared to the kratky plant. More than anything, I think its important to show that the use of an air pump can have a variety of results, most of which aren't overwhelmingly better than a kratky grow- especially for average-experienced growers such as myself.
@@gringo77345 Electric bill for the air pump? Air pumps don't use jack for watts buddy. A large led grow light with 4ft by 2ft coverage only uses 200 watts. Air pump is a fraction of that for sure. A regular space heater at full power uses 1500 watts. Most microwaves can use 1500 too....
Thanks for the well-designed experiment. I have bypassed the air pump method, because I suspected that they were an unnecessary use of electricity. Thanks for proving my suspicions.
idk man, i he got algae in both and i think that would affect the growth a bit, i think he should try and control for that factor, however, not using pumps seems promising
My understanding is that, as the water is drained by plant consumption, follicle roots sprout from the main roots to consume oxygen. With Kratky, you get "one and done"... As in, when your water is completely drained, you can't refill, because you'd drown those oxygen-taking follicles. I had a pepper plant that I refilled many many times with a DWC system and it thrived to the size of a house shrubbery. I'm still intermediate level at all this, but I believe the air pump (as long as it's seated to the bottom of your bucket) will feed oxygen that those roots can take in indefinitely. You shouldn't just drop an air stone in the water though or it might rise up. It should be seated to the bottom and have a diameter large enough to the cover the span of the root system. I use a 4-inch air stone.
Thanks for sharing. Can’t really speak to the science, but I can say that I’ve had no issues refilling my reservoirs, the plants seem to do fine. While that’s not exactly Kratky’s method, I’m not using any air stones. I put up a seed to harvest video for the ‘Kratky’ pepper plant- it grew 3+ feet high and I harvested over 50 snack sized peppers from it before the plant got powdery mildew and I cut it down. I’m sure it’s possible to grow better, but a passive system without aeration that you top up when needed is incredibly easy and rarely has a disappointing harvest in my experience
pretty much, i've seen one grower fill the bottom every week or so for his weed build, seemed to keep the plant alive, although i couldn't verify if it as thriving or not. some of his mix was a bit off cause he didn't use a clean bucket and some of his mix settled on the bottom each time.
A 'forever kratky' method would mean not refilling the entire tub when its empty... but when the water level gets to 1/3 left, top it back up to just 3-4" below the net cup. That way you don't drown the air roots, you always leave a few inches of air roots at the top, but can keep refilling the water level forever (in an indoor system)... which, in the case of an indeterminate tomato would be a grand thing. You'd only end the plant when its so so tall/long that you can't wrap it around its trellis anymore. (Cheap and Easy TOMATO TRELLIS, by Next Level Gardening -- not my channel, just a trellis that is perfect, his tomatoes - outside- are 30 ft tall but he can pick the tomatoes just by standing next to it)
I think the shortcomings of going without an air pump can be overcome simply by drilling 4 holes above the water line for air to circulate naturally through the buckets Air Zone above the water. There are two kinds of roots, water and air. The water roots don't need air, and the air roots don't need water. At least, that's the theory for how the Kratky system works in the first place. I am doing an experiment with that design now, just germinating the seeds. I will have three 5 Gallon buckets. One with an air pump and no vent holes, one with no air pump or vent holes, and one with just vent holes and no air pump. I strongly suspect that the air pump does nothing but send fresh air to the air roots, so by supplying the needed fresh air circulation through four 3/8 inch holes above the water line should replace the need for an air pump. To prevent over filling the bucket, two to three inches below the net pot is another small drain hole to prevent the drowning of the plant should a rain storm or something else happen. Diluted nutrients can be replaced, drowned plants can not. Plants will grow in quart mason jars until there is enough root to hit the water at the level of the drain hole. Transplanting is as simple as moving the net cup to the waiting 5 gallon bucket. I also have an automatic water level measuring device for it, still in prototype. The idea is to have it float and slowly sink to a point where a certain amount of water needs to be added. I am using a piece of 3/4 PVC pipe long enough to go an inch or so above the bucket lid with a TEE at the bottom, a fishing float (biggest that will fit the pipe), and a wooden 3/16 dowel pushed into the float. My current problem is that the wood is trying to rot so I am looking for something more waterproof. The design works fine if you don't leave it in and just put it in the pipe to check it every now and then. So far, in all of my searching and video watching, I have never seen an air pump vs no air pump debate that addressed the air circulation problem with the natural solution I propose here. Use any of this if you can.
What about the needed humidity level that the air-roots need to get oxygen in? If you make holes you will destroy much of that humidity inside the container.
I use the dip stick method to check the level of water through a 40 mm PVC pipe. For the float I use the plastic bottle in which the medicine tablets are packed or for that matter you can use any plastic bottle. Use plumbers tape to make the cap waterproof and seal the wooden rod with sealant. it will work perfectly. If you use wood as the float, then don't keep it constantly in the PVC pipe but put a cap on top of the pipe to prevent light entering the bucket
I do the no air pump all the type and it never affect it. Use good nutrient and a good full spectrum light, you will be surprised with the yield. Don't forget to use a dark colored container. Give them good full spectrum LED light for 6-8 hours daily and run your fan for at least 30 minutes everyday to help with auto pollination. Happy gardening.
Were both systems running the same nutrients? If so, the results dont really surprise me. In my experience, air pump allows you to run higher ppm of nutrients. Of course, one will also have to make sure the plants are not limited by other factors, most importantly light.
Agreed! I was running tight on space and had to cut the experiment a bit short. But maybe in the future I can give it another, longer, try! I’ll be racing a few other plants as well.
Could even just put black bags around the buckets...doubled up or trippled :) Also the one w air stone can handle more like worm tea or nutes whichever or both and if watch the ph of its water it can quadruple what your used to here ;)) try that :)
DWC versus Kratky in 5 gallon buckets, I got more pods and and larger pods using DWC. That being said, I went to 27 gallon Kratky container for peppers and got hundreds of pods with no noise, no electricity costs, and no nutrient changes.
Love the background view of the city! Id love to know which nutrients and lights you use for indoor peppers.. Do you initially PH the nutrient solution?
i would wonder about pepper production differences - size/quantity/ how long it takes to produce etc. You would think that a larger healthier root system would have to have some sort of positive impact
Couldn't agree more! Some other tests Ive seen showed larger, but slower, fruit production in the dwc plant. Definitely hope to look into this more when I have the space
Nice experiment, enjoying the content here Wonder what the results would be if the buckets were painted black to block out all light. Keep at it growers!
I rarely do a complete change. Mostly i top up the reservoir, leaving an inch or two of roots exposed. I check the ph after top ups, so maybe every 5-10 days depending on how big the plant is and how fast it is taking in the water
Excellent.....!!! Can u tell me.... How much litter's or gallon nutrients mixing water needs for one plant's, start to end of harvest....??? ( DWC or Kraky method )
@@JimmyBHarvests likes Master blend 4-18-38.... Have u experience Master blend...? If yes, then tell me... About my previous question answer.... Thanks....
I didn’t continue the race beyond what was in the video so I can’t speak to how the pump affects fruiting. Both these plants fruited, but neither had a pump then. Tikki o has a similar video where she went the entire lifecycle, I think you would enjoy it
The reason why there was more algae in the container which had the air pump could also be because the air which was pumped into the water contained algae spores
I utilize an air pump during the final vegetation stage of the Kratky method. Reason being that once the roots reach the bottom of the reservoir you begin having to refill the water. I find you can fill the reservoir back up if you add an air stone. Of course this depends on what you're growing and how long you are keeping your plant around.
I would love to see what the nutrient density in my (Kratky) tank looks like at different depths.... But I guess as the roots grow deeper it doesn't matter that much, does it? Won't the nutes diffuse naturally throughout the tank?
I've been growing peppers via Kratky method for years with no air pump. Root structure is always good, foliage is healthy, fruit size is as expected, and foliage is great. I can't comment on what an air pump will do in regards to benefit, but I definitely don't feel I'm at a deficit.
That concept is the basis for deep water cultures and a number of hydroponic systems. There is always dissolved oxygen in water though, and pumps aren’t necessary. Many people use them and claim benefits, which I was testing with these plants
Occasionally the plants have attracted bugs. Depending on the pest or plant i try to repel them or get rid of the plant. It hasnt really been a big issue, especially with veggies and herbs.
I did not run this through to harvest. But those ive seen that have report bigger fruit with aeration, but it takes a lot longer to grow and ripen those fruit vs the kratky comparison.
I have a question about blooms and pollination. My blooms seem to be falling off and I am not getting any production of fruit on my pepper plants. Can you help with any suggestions?
Guys I did try the shaking of the plant every day just went in a gave it a little shake,shake, shake. And it did work I began to see some peppers finally start to form. Thanks
Bacillus amyloliquefaciens is considered a root-colonizing biocontrol bacterium, and is used to fight some plant root pathogens in agriculture, aquaculture, and hydroponics. It has been shown to provide benefits to plants in both soil and hydroponic applications.
Kratky method means that water level comes down over time in the container, so the root system that's not exposed to water absorbs oxygen. Therefore I wouldn't expect an air pump to do much good, unless you're constantly topping up the water in the container.
Although I have no direct experience at this point, it is my understanding from others who use air pumps that the biggest differences are in the fruiting stage - the Kratky method is perfect for the vegetation and leafy stages, but when the plant is actually producing fruit, the oxygenated water increases the size and quality of the fruit, or so I am told. I have three pepper plants right now - they are 19 days from sprouting and are currently in Kratky jar method. I am going to try your experiment into 5 gallon buckets - with and without air. I'll let you know what happens..... ;)
Love it Laural! Please let me know how things turn out! I’ve seen some other videos of people who went through the entire lifecycle with and without an air pump and the plants with an air pump did grow bigger fruit, but they took much longer to ripen. I’m sure the air pump helps, but I’m not sure if it helps enough to justify the effort. Again- excited to hear how your grows compare!
@@JimmyBHarvests Thank you! Wish there was a way to send you a picture of the Pepper plants now - I still have them in jars, but based on the size of yours when you transferred them to the pail, it's just about time to do that! Also - do you prune your peppers? I am seeing a lot of videos about this, but am hesitant to try....
I’d definitely recommend pruning branches as the plant develops, especially those on the inside of the plant or growing back towards the middle of the plant. I didn’t prune my peppers enough and plants I grew were too tightly packed- not enough light penetration to the flowers causes dropped flowers and blossom rot. Can also end up with powdery mildew- which I did- as a result of not enough air flow throughout the plant and humidity getting trapped in there. Don’t be afraid to make some cuts! It’s better to end up with 20 good ripe peppers than 60 small unripe peppers.
@@JimmyBHarvests Thanks! Any chance you can do a video on where or how to prune - or can you recommend one? I see a lot on here - but not everyone who makes videos knows what they are doing ;)
I’d just recommend to watch the plant and don’t be afraid to cut small stems as they appear. Cut them early rather than late. It’s as much an art as it is a science I think you’ll be able to feel it out
Has anyone else noticed that the bucket without the air pump, is also the one with the hole in the lid?? His video at start shows the white square is covering the hole for the airline then later says that the same bucket with the hole in lid is the air less bucket...
@@JimmyBHarvests I hear what your saying but I'm growing autos in a solo cup atm full of soil with holes at the bottom but then I decided to fill a mason jar full of water soo the roots will have somewhere to go. But then I noticed that the water was starting g to smell funky but the plant still looked really good
Thanks for doing this. I would like to compare the yields of those pepper plants as I've read root structure impacts fruit size. Keep up the good work. 👍🤙
When I used to grow I'd sometimes just throw a water pump in the bottom with no tube and that would circulate everything extremely well , next I'd always use black containers, then ontop of that around the net cup I'd throw a sheet of black plastic to cover any light leaks. Something like hydroguard does a great job at killing off any problems you encounter with bacteria or fungi. Oh and always make sure your pH and ec are in check at all times. And try to make sure temps don't go above 24 C if you keep all that in check you shouldn't have any bad outcomes or at least keep them to a minimum (my tomato plants used to love all these tricks LOL) oh and lastly that air Stone was tiny and very lonely LOL I'd throw a few more in there and you'd notice the difference. Water levels are important don't let it run dry or the root structure will change you'll notice it yourself if you look closely on the roots above water line vs under so best to try and keep it around the same level as long as possible happy growing peeps
Thanks for the awesome content. While I am new to discovering Hydroponics, I was wondering do we really need an air pump. Not because I can't use/buy an air pump, but because I don't want to. It does not make sense to put an airpump (and waste electricity) for a couple of weeks if not months while the plant grows and bears fruit. It is not just waste of money on electricity bill but also waste of scarce resource (in my country, electricity is scarce). So, principally, it was not acceptable to me. I am so happy to discover that air pump is not essential to the whole process. Would appreciate if you could also confirm if both the plants bear the same quality of fruit. Thanks for the awesome content once again. Much appreciated.
Both plants had fruits that were similar, but I eventually stopped using the air pump, I didn’t keep it active the entire plant lifecycle. You can grow without an air pump just fine. The Kratky method is real and it works!
As far as algae goes that's because u using white buckets use dark ones If have them out side paint over the black tho with white paint to reflect the sun so water don't get hot Or wrap bucket in tin foil
I love this you are blowing my mind. I'm a second generation canna farmer and I started out growing with all the old stereotypes. But education an information has changed the game. Dudes are just mad on how much they spent on there DWC setup 🤣. Then your over here just putting plants in water getting the same results.
😂😂 the jury is still out on air pumps in my opinion! You’re right that these dudes are mad though - being told I need an air pump is probably the number 1 comment I receive 😂
@@JimmyBHarvests 100%. Even the guy at the counter of my local hydroponics shop kept telling me that hydroponics wouldn't work without an air pump/stone. It wasn't until the manager/owner came out and explained Kratky (to the employee) that the guy realized I wasn't crazy. The owner DID say plants grow faster with air movement though.
Having translucent buckets and algae growth skews the results as both plants are not growing in the same conditions. The more algae the more nutrient loss occurs in the buckets which means less for the plants.If you are comparing DWC Vs Kratky then aeration and nutrient solution replacement should be the only variables. One benefit to DWC is there are less air roots produced which allows refilling the buckets with nutrient solution causing less stress on the plant. Alternately refilling a Kratky bucket with more nutrient solution should if it run out prior to growth completion may drown the plant's roots as 80% of them are air roots.
Make sure you use food grade air stones, I know that some cheap aquarium air stones use carcinogens in the material they use to make the stones, would not want that in my system. May also alter plant growth.
A quick fix: Set the buckets into a black plastic bag to help kill the light, but loosely gathered near the plant's bottom stem. But leave some breathing room for the roots. Algae seems to smother the roots, or at least retard their growth.
Hey Jimmy hope all is well. It seems my tomatoes, peppers and zucchini grew just as well with my kratky method vs water pump method : about the same. Then, I did an experiment with 3 kinds of lettuce. Using the NFT method & kratky method. The lettuce grew better with the NFT method. I am beginning to think that smaller greens/ ie smaller plants or plants that require less nutient ratio like leafy greens benefit from the extra oxygenation of the NFT system. The NFT System I used were piping that ran water through a snake of tubing.
Need black tubing light travels through and down transparent tuning. Kinda bodged the experiment dont even need to ask for any more info like size of air pump, nutrients, ph and mychorrizie bacteria
Ì don't understand this video as an unexperienced grower I'm trying to look up some information. You're telling there is not a lot of difference with or without an airpump, although I see a difference. Look at how the leaves a hanging/behaving. However, what does this mean for the end result? What is the end result? It makes no sense to make a video without a result.
There was little to no difference between the two plants grown here. Both produced fruit just fine. The kratky (aeration free) method can work well, so can pumps. Ive seen some people document bigger larger fruits with air pumps, but they took considerably longer to grow and harvest. The real point i think is that both options work well, do what works best for your own space/garden. Good luck.
Maybe, the larger root mass doesn't matter as much during the vegetation phase of growth. Flowering can be a particularly intensive phase of growth. In the case of cannabis, it may be that plants with a larger root mass going into flowering (all else being equal) are a bit more efficient at taking nutrients up during this intensive phase of growth, which could increase flower and/or cannabinoid yields in comparison.
Yea, I agree Austin. Lots of variables involved hard to determine what’s what. I’m going to try another race with cannabis plants and we’ll see what happens!
I have watched dozens of hydroponic videos lately as I am about to have a go, but in all the videos nobody has mentioned hydrogen peroxide. I give my indoor ornamentals a bit of H2O2 a couple of times a year & they love it. I have wondered how come nobody has mentioned that before. About time somebody did RoundnRound.
If you paint your pots black you won't have an algi issue in my eyes. You can even pant them back white ontop of the black as long as there is a black layer to block light 💯✌💚
From your video and from looking into other videos on aeration in general. I've gathered that aeration definitely makes the root structure thicker, longer, and stronger. Now I can imagine that if this was a tree that was to be planted into the ground... Maybe the roots will establish themselves better than the nonaerated tree. Also perhaps the roots are only longer because the movement of water causes them to grow stronger, the same as a fan blowing the top side of the plant. This swaying movement tells the plant to strengthen its stems it seems, as it is adapting to its environment. I am a student of biodiversity and the environment who is going into bioscience... I've learnt a lot along the way, though I feel this whole idea needs further study. I believe that the best thing you can do for your plant is to create a truly balanced environment, and perhaps even an ecosystem. But the environment is the most important thing for a plant... So lighting, temperature, humidity, nutrients, water and drainage... And water flow for hydroponics. Transpiration is a key element of growth for non-submerged plants, transpiration is what essentially creates the upwards water pressure that allows for growth. I think your best bet is to aerate the water using a dissolved Oxygen Emitter. Then add that water to the plant pot, perhaps then there may be a different result. But I could wonder about this for hours, and so deeper study and experiments need to be done. I am learning this and I'm sure there are many people out there who already know it, but I do believe the environment the plant is in needs to be 100% controlled and monitored with all factors taken into consideration. My favourite thing about all this is the thought of making a capsule that can survive in space and grow food. It is the year 2021 and now it is our mission as humans to master our enviroment and improve life for all living things.
Lots of research still to be done in this area I think. Aside from what’s truly ‘optimal’, we can do do just fine in our personal gardens keeping things quite simple.
As an aquarium keeper I am pretty sure that low oxygen levels is more favorable for algae than high oxygen levels. The higher the DO then less mold and algae can survive. Circulation also plays a part in that too. I have done this same experiment with vastly different results on my channel. The aeration needs to be more powerful. And once the stone becomes encased in a root mass, it looses its effectiveness drastically. The oxygen exchange happens at the surface with the agitation that the rising and popping bubbles create. The large bubbles themselves do not put O2 into the water column by simply being in the water. They need to rise to the surface and cause a lot of agitation. What happens mostly with aeration is the CO2 in the air reacts with carbonates in the water and creates carbonic acid, lowering the PH. The fluctuating PH and CO2 levels in the water is what drives algae growth. Not the oxygen.
Damn, I’m honoured to have you in this comment section and know you watched the video! Huge fan of your channel!
That said, thanks for dropping this knowledge on me and the other viewers! 🙏 Great stuff, this helps me a lot.
Does it make sense if you have a large horizontal pvc system that you put your air stone in the reservoir?
Creative Genius Productions that’s a pretty typical method. But usually you only need an airstone for that if it’s all organic fertilizer so the bacteria can stay alive. But with a flowing system it usually already has plenty of air contact. Unless it’s just a trickle flow.
@@GrowingAnswers i have 3 dwc buckets right now, all three started differently tho.
1 i started with the seed in hydroton alone, the second i germinated and then put in the hydroton and the 3rd one i prematurely put in the hydroton. i don't have any problems with the first and second one but the third one burst out of its seed but the root didn't grow, how do i troubleshoot this?
I just finished a 3-month Kratky lettuce project and I had zero algae. I was VERY careful to block out all light and keep temps around 75 though.
Maybe these white buckets get too much light inside?
Thank you for posting this. Many forget that Prof. Kratky didn't develop this system to compete with electrical systems, but to make it possible for people to grow low cost, low maintenance food when electricity wasn't available or was cost prohibitive. The lower costs, ease of use, low maintenance and low impact of the Kratky system make it perfect for many of us who don't have the mechanical talent or financial resources of others. Well done.
Great info thanks for sharing!
I have loads of time and money, but still use Kratky because its the king and gets me endless harvest.
I watched another Video and the Lady was growing Pepper Plants with and without aeration. She had her Buckets covered with Aluminum Foil. The Plants were similar, the aerated one being bigger but the Root system on the aerated one was quite a bit bigger. But the biggest difference was the Peppers were over twice the size in the aerated Plant with the larger Root system. I don't know if it was the Aluminum Foil blocking the light, but she had NO problems with Algae. A definite difference in the outcome of the Peppers with the Air Pump!
Tikki O's video is great! The foil was likely an attempt to block light getting into her reservoirs. Her air pump plant did take considerably longer to ripen its fruit compared to the kratky plant. More than anything, I think its important to show that the use of an air pump can have a variety of results, most of which aren't overwhelmingly better than a kratky grow- especially for average-experienced growers such as myself.
Exactly;)
Wait until you fruit them, the air pumped roots will allow for fruit that is double or triple the size of the Kratky.
HUGE FACTS
yes and for that electricity bill you will able to buy a years supply of peppers and bananas
@@gringo77345 Electric bill for the air pump? Air pumps don't use jack for watts buddy. A large led grow light with 4ft by 2ft coverage only uses 200 watts. Air pump is a fraction of that for sure. A regular space heater at full power uses 1500 watts. Most microwaves can use 1500 too....
@@feltysaquaria819 Exactly, my led light only uses 8 bucks a month. Pump would use way less!!
a good aquarium air pump is just 5watts and can run for years.. so 5watts that would be way way less compare to lights..
Thanks for the well-designed experiment. I have bypassed the air pump method, because I suspected that they were an unnecessary use of electricity. Thanks for proving my suspicions.
Best of lucks starting your own hydroponic grows!
But you'll lost yield during fruiting.... speaking from experience
idk man, i he got algae in both and i think that would affect the growth a bit, i think he should try and control for that factor, however, not using pumps seems promising
Biggest cause of trouble with DWC is light getting in through net pots or using clear tubing as level indicator.
Causing Pythium & root rot big time.
I use the airstone and pump to help keep root rot from forming in the water pithium
You think the movement in the reservoir prevents roots from rotting?
My understanding is that, as the water is drained by plant consumption, follicle roots sprout from the main roots to consume oxygen. With Kratky, you get "one and done"... As in, when your water is completely drained, you can't refill, because you'd drown those oxygen-taking follicles. I had a pepper plant that I refilled many many times with a DWC system and it thrived to the size of a house shrubbery. I'm still intermediate level at all this, but I believe the air pump (as long as it's seated to the bottom of your bucket) will feed oxygen that those roots can take in indefinitely. You shouldn't just drop an air stone in the water though or it might rise up. It should be seated to the bottom and have a diameter large enough to the cover the span of the root system. I use a 4-inch air stone.
Thanks for sharing. Can’t really speak to the science, but I can say that I’ve had no issues refilling my reservoirs, the plants seem to do fine. While that’s not exactly Kratky’s method, I’m not using any air stones. I put up a seed to harvest video for the ‘Kratky’ pepper plant- it grew 3+ feet high and I harvested over 50 snack sized peppers from it before the plant got powdery mildew and I cut it down. I’m sure it’s possible to grow better, but a passive system without aeration that you top up when needed is incredibly easy and rarely has a disappointing harvest in my experience
pretty much, i've seen one grower fill the bottom every week or so for his weed build, seemed to keep the plant alive, although i couldn't verify if it as thriving or not. some of his mix was a bit off cause he didn't use a clean bucket and some of his mix settled on the bottom each time.
A 'forever kratky' method would mean not refilling the entire tub when its empty... but when the water level gets to 1/3 left, top it back up to just 3-4" below the net cup. That way you don't drown the air roots, you always leave a few inches of air roots at the top, but can keep refilling the water level forever (in an indoor system)... which, in the case of an indeterminate tomato would be a grand thing. You'd only end the plant when its so so tall/long that you can't wrap it around its trellis anymore. (Cheap and Easy TOMATO TRELLIS, by Next Level Gardening -- not my channel, just a trellis that is perfect, his tomatoes - outside- are 30 ft tall but he can pick the tomatoes just by standing next to it)
I think the shortcomings of going without an air pump can be overcome simply by drilling 4 holes above the water line for air to circulate naturally through the buckets Air Zone above the water. There are two kinds of roots, water and air. The water roots don't need air, and the air roots don't need water. At least, that's the theory for how the Kratky system works in the first place.
I am doing an experiment with that design now, just germinating the seeds.
I will have three 5 Gallon buckets. One with an air pump and no vent holes, one with no air pump or vent holes, and one with just vent holes and no air pump. I strongly suspect that the air pump does nothing but send fresh air to the air roots, so by supplying the needed fresh air circulation through four 3/8 inch holes above the water line should replace the need for an air pump.
To prevent over filling the bucket, two to three inches below the net pot is another small drain hole to prevent the drowning of the plant should a rain storm or something else happen. Diluted nutrients can be replaced, drowned plants can not. Plants will grow in quart mason jars until there is enough root to hit the water at the level of the drain hole. Transplanting is as simple as moving the net cup to the waiting 5 gallon bucket.
I also have an automatic water level measuring device for it, still in prototype. The idea is to have it float and slowly sink to a point where a certain amount of water needs to be added. I am using a piece of 3/4 PVC pipe long enough to go an inch or so above the bucket lid with a TEE at the bottom, a fishing float (biggest that will fit the pipe), and a wooden 3/16 dowel pushed into the float. My current problem is that the wood is trying to rot so I am looking for something more waterproof. The design works fine if you don't leave it in and just put it in the pipe to check it every now and then.
So far, in all of my searching and video watching, I have never seen an air pump vs no air pump debate that addressed the air circulation problem with the natural solution I propose here.
Use any of this if you can.
Love where you’re headed with this and hope to hear/see your results!
What was the outcome?
What about the needed humidity level that the air-roots need to get oxygen in? If you make holes you will destroy much of that humidity inside the container.
I use the dip stick method to check the level of water through a 40 mm PVC pipe. For the float I use the plastic bottle in which the medicine tablets are packed or for that matter you can use any plastic bottle. Use plumbers tape to make the cap waterproof and seal the wooden rod with sealant. it will work perfectly. If you use wood as the float, then don't keep it constantly in the PVC pipe but put a cap on top of the pipe to prevent light entering the bucket
I do the no air pump all the type and it never affect it. Use good nutrient and a good full spectrum light, you will be surprised with the yield. Don't forget to use a dark colored container.
Give them good full spectrum LED light for 6-8 hours daily and run your fan for at least 30 minutes everyday to help with auto pollination. Happy gardening.
Love it! Thanks for sharing
Were both systems running the same nutrients? If so, the results dont really surprise me. In my experience, air pump allows you to run higher ppm of nutrients. Of course, one will also have to make sure the plants are not limited by other factors, most importantly light.
Where can I buy a painting????
It would be interesting to know if there are any differences in the size, color, number of peppers , etc produced with air or non air plants.
Agreed! I was running tight on space and had to cut the experiment a bit short. But maybe in the future I can give it another, longer, try! I’ll be racing a few other plants as well.
I have a video with a comparison between Soil/Kratky/Dwc/Aeroponics. Ep1 out now. Seed to harvest
Could even just put black bags around the buckets...doubled up or trippled :)
Also the one w air stone can handle more like worm tea or nutes whichever or both and if watch the ph of its water it can quadruple what your used to here ;)) try that :)
The air pump and stone helps me regulate my reservoir temperatures with my setup
Very cool! I haven’t looked into temperature control much but I have read good things!
DWC versus Kratky in 5 gallon buckets, I got more pods and and larger pods using DWC. That being said, I went to 27 gallon Kratky container for peppers and got hundreds of pods with no noise, no electricity costs, and no nutrient changes.
That’s very interesting! Thanks for sharing your results, Matt!
The root structure looks healthier but the plant on the right looks like it has more plant mass on top.
Love the background view of the city! Id love to know which nutrients and lights you use for indoor peppers.. Do you initially PH the nutrient solution?
I currently use Advanced nutrients and a mars hydro tsw2000 - links and info in video description for all products/equipment used
Checking ph after mixing nutrients is always a good idea before putting your plant into the reservoir
i would wonder about pepper production differences - size/quantity/ how long it takes to produce etc. You would think that a larger healthier root system would have to have some sort of positive impact
Couldn't agree more! Some other tests Ive seen showed larger, but slower, fruit production in the dwc plant. Definitely hope to look into this more when I have the space
Nice experiment, enjoying the content here
Wonder what the results would be if the buckets were painted black to block out all light.
Keep at it growers!
Thanks for the kind words, Dan! I'll get these buckets fixed up and we'll get another race started shortly! :)
@@JimmyBHarvests DO THIS PLEASE LOL
How often do you change the Solution in the Kratky System? Do you check PH Daily?
I rarely do a complete change. Mostly i top up the reservoir, leaving an inch or two of roots exposed. I check the ph after top ups, so maybe every 5-10 days depending on how big the plant is and how fast it is taking in the water
Will it minimize or not at all occurred the algae growth if the system designed to have a water circulating system !?!
Circulating water would have little impact. Its an issue of light getting into the reservoir
Did you use any nutrient solution before moving them to the small jars?
No, just water
@@JimmyBHarvests Okay, great, thank you. I'm always amazed at how much a seedling can grow in just water.
Agreed, its pretty incredible. There is enough nutrition in the seed to last 2-3 weeks usually!
Excellent.....!!!
Can u tell me....
How much litter's or gallon nutrients mixing water needs for one plant's, start to end of harvest....??? ( DWC or Kraky method )
Depends on what nutrients you have. They all come with instructions of how to mix and apply throughout a plants lifecycle
@@JimmyBHarvests likes Master blend 4-18-38....
Have u experience Master blend...? If yes, then tell me...
About my previous question answer....
Thanks....
Haven’t used masterblend personally
Try using true high pressure aeroponics system you can build your own. Uses 90% less water and grows much faster. Did the DWC grew faster?
I go to lowes for the blue 5gal buckets so i dont have to paint them. Never had any issues with algae.
Great tip bro, thanks. The white buckets were my only food safe option
Any update on the race? How about the fruits of each other method? Any difference? I'm very interested on the results! Thanks!
I didn’t continue the race beyond what was in the video so I can’t speak to how the pump affects fruiting. Both these plants fruited, but neither had a pump then. Tikki o has a similar video where she went the entire lifecycle, I think you would enjoy it
Can i make hole in the side so it can have a aeration?.
Sure can
The reason why there was more algae in the container which had the air pump could also be because the air which was pumped into the water contained algae spores
Hey one question is it good to have an air stone in the nutrient solution? I don't mean the one in the dwc.
the air stone is what makes it dwc!
I utilize an air pump during the final vegetation stage of the Kratky method.
Reason being that once the roots reach the bottom of the reservoir you begin having to refill the water. I find you can fill the reservoir back up if you add an air stone.
Of course this depends on what you're growing and how long you are keeping your plant around.
Thanks for sharing!
Thats why i use air stones! Especially in summertime when your bucket can be empty in a matter of a couple weeks or less.
Using a airpump is good if you want to use a pipe and pump the water through loads of plants in a small space.
I use a aquarium sponge filter on top of air so it gets filtration but not too much and water agitation
I like running an air pump because it keeps the nutrients circulating in the reservoir instead of settling
True true, good point
I would love to see what the nutrient density in my (Kratky) tank looks like at different depths....
But I guess as the roots grow deeper it doesn't matter that much, does it? Won't the nutes diffuse naturally throughout the tank?
Settling? Aren't the nutrients soluble in water? Unless you have a saturated solution, there shouldn't be anything out of solution.
@@nickhayley when you run a dwc without and air pump or water pump the nutrients with create a film on top of the water that can coat your roots
What will happen when water comes to the end in both buckets?
will you add water, or will you just clean buckets and grow new herb peppers?
I top up the buckets as required throughout the life of the plants. Every once and a while I do a dump and start a fresh reservoir.
And you can use a float valve to keep the kratsy method bucket at the same level even when the plant drinks it.
Ive never heard of that, thanks for sharing I'll definitely look into it
Great hydro comparison
I figured it would mostly be used on the ISS.
i thought air pumps give your roots oxygen? is that not the case? i think it also keeps the nutrients mixed up as well.
The air pumps increase the amount of dissolved oxygen available to the plant, that's correct!
I've been growing peppers via Kratky method for years with no air pump. Root structure is always good, foliage is healthy, fruit size is as expected, and foliage is great. I can't comment on what an air pump will do in regards to benefit, but I definitely don't feel I'm at a deficit.
he is a genius, good job my brother
Thanks for the support! 🤙🙏
Installation of air pumps leads to growth in plants?
That concept is the basis for deep water cultures and a number of hydroponic systems. There is always dissolved oxygen in water though, and pumps aren’t necessary. Many people use them and claim benefits, which I was testing with these plants
@@JimmyBHarvests Which of these tests passed
Which of these plants did a good growth , air pump without air pump
Do you get bugs/flies/insects since it’s a garden indoors? If yes, how do you prevent them?
Occasionally the plants have attracted bugs. Depending on the pest or plant i try to repel them or get rid of the plant. It hasnt really been a big issue, especially with veggies and herbs.
what really matters is the crop, did you run this test all the way to harvest, any difference in yield?
I did not run this through to harvest. But those ive seen that have report bigger fruit with aeration, but it takes a lot longer to grow and ripen those fruit vs the kratky comparison.
Do you dwc-people let the airpump run the whole time 24/7?
For the most part that’s what I’ve seen recommended
hello jimmy is pump open 24hours?
It can be. I had mine on an intermittent timer to give it a few breaks throughout the day. I don’t remember the exact schedule at this point though
I have a question about blooms and pollination. My blooms seem to be falling off and I am not getting any production of fruit on my pepper plants. Can you help with any suggestions?
Some blossom drop is normal.. might be too hot, or a nutrient deficiency causing it
Or the flowers are not being pollenated. Use a q-tip to spread the love
Guys I did try the shaking of the plant every day just went in a gave it a little shake,shake, shake. And it did work I began to see some peppers finally start to form. Thanks
what size of net pot you use for this plant?
2 inches
Bacillus amyloliquefaciens is considered a root-colonizing biocontrol bacterium, and is used to fight some plant root pathogens in agriculture, aquaculture, and hydroponics. It has been shown to provide benefits to plants in both soil and hydroponic applications.
Thanks for sharing!
Hi. In my opinion the plant was keeping without a pump looks much much better. Seriously :)
I thought the same thing.
Yes same here,I am going to get rid of my pump.
How do you remove the pod from the roots?
I only do that when I’m done with the plant- so I cut the roots off
How can I make that hole in a bucket
I used a knife to put a hole in the lid
Get black buckets and black air line... Maybe even a bigger air stone
Or spraypaint the outside. Or wrap foil around it. Anything to keep the air out!
@@PhilDenton light*
black buckets are bad, they overheat. better use tin foil. air stones are bad for the environment.
I love airpumps to naturally diffuse the chloroamines the water treatment plants add instead of vitamin c
you have to wrap and cover the bukets . i use foil . plus put some cal mag in the water with big grow your plants will love you
Kratky method means that water level comes down over time in the container, so the root system that's not exposed to water absorbs oxygen. Therefore I wouldn't expect an air pump to do much good, unless you're constantly topping up the water in the container.
Yield difference?
Although I have no direct experience at this point, it is my understanding from others who use air pumps that the biggest differences are in the fruiting stage - the Kratky method is perfect for the vegetation and leafy stages, but when the plant is actually producing fruit, the oxygenated water increases the size and quality of the fruit, or so I am told. I have three pepper plants right now - they are 19 days from sprouting and are currently in Kratky jar method. I am going to try your experiment into 5 gallon buckets - with and without air. I'll let you know what happens..... ;)
Love it Laural! Please let me know how things turn out! I’ve seen some other videos of people who went through the entire lifecycle with and without an air pump and the plants with an air pump did grow bigger fruit, but they took much longer to ripen. I’m sure the air pump helps, but I’m not sure if it helps enough to justify the effort. Again- excited to hear how your grows compare!
@@JimmyBHarvests Thank you! Wish there was a way to send you a picture of the Pepper plants now - I still have them in jars, but based on the size of yours when you transferred them to the pail, it's just about time to do that! Also - do you prune your peppers? I am seeing a lot of videos about this, but am hesitant to try....
I’d definitely recommend pruning branches as the plant develops, especially those on the inside of the plant or growing back towards the middle of the plant. I didn’t prune my peppers enough and plants I grew were too tightly packed- not enough light penetration to the flowers causes dropped flowers and blossom rot. Can also end up with powdery mildew- which I did- as a result of not enough air flow throughout the plant and humidity getting trapped in there. Don’t be afraid to make some cuts! It’s better to end up with 20 good ripe peppers than 60 small unripe peppers.
@@JimmyBHarvests Thanks! Any chance you can do a video on where or how to prune - or can you recommend one? I see a lot on here - but not everyone who makes videos knows what they are doing ;)
I’d just recommend to watch the plant and don’t be afraid to cut small stems as they appear. Cut them early rather than late. It’s as much an art as it is a science I think you’ll be able to feel it out
Great video, quality content!🌞
Thanks!
Has anyone else noticed that the bucket without the air pump, is also the one with the hole in the lid?? His video at start shows the white square is covering the hole for the airline then later says that the same bucket with the hole in lid is the air less bucket...
At 0:52 you can see both lids have those small holes.
Can you use soil as your medium for dwc?
DWC is deep water culture. The point of hydroponics is to not use soil.
@@JimmyBHarvests I hear what your saying but I'm growing autos in a solo cup atm full of soil with holes at the bottom but then I decided to fill a mason jar full of water soo the roots will have somewhere to go.
But then I noticed that the water was starting g to smell funky but the plant still looked really good
@@JimmyBHarvests do you think it's because of lack of oxygen
I think it’s because soil is full of live bacteria and organisms which could get out of control when kept around a constant supply of water
Thanks for doing this.
I would like to compare the yields of those pepper plants as I've read root structure impacts fruit size.
Keep up the good work. 👍🤙
I've never seen so much algie growing in a DWC setup. I use airpumps & stones indoors & mine are clean.!
Lol these plants saw a lot of sunlight which was able to penetrate the sides of my buckets. A quick coat of paint put an end to that though!
Its probably because the buckets he used were white...
@@gamethyst4648 use black bucket = auto clean water lol
without a pump you can dump the water out in another bucket, from up high, which will aerate the water. Back and forth...
Yep, great idea, definitely would work. There’s enough dissolved oxygen at indoor temperatures that we don’t need to make the effort though.
When I used to grow I'd sometimes just throw a water pump in the bottom with no tube and that would circulate everything extremely well , next I'd always use black containers, then ontop of that around the net cup I'd throw a sheet of black plastic to cover any light leaks. Something like hydroguard does a great job at killing off any problems you encounter with bacteria or fungi. Oh and always make sure your pH and ec are in check at all times. And try to make sure temps don't go above 24 C if you keep all that in check you shouldn't have any bad outcomes or at least keep them to a minimum (my tomato plants used to love all these tricks LOL) oh and lastly that air Stone was tiny and very lonely LOL I'd throw a few more in there and you'd notice the difference. Water levels are important don't let it run dry or the root structure will change you'll notice it yourself if you look closely on the roots above water line vs under so best to try and keep it around the same level as long as possible happy growing peeps
Great info thanks for sharing!
nice work bro
🙏🙏🤙
Thanks for the awesome content. While I am new to discovering Hydroponics, I was wondering do we really need an air pump. Not because I can't use/buy an air pump, but because I don't want to. It does not make sense to put an airpump (and waste electricity) for a couple of weeks if not months while the plant grows and bears fruit. It is not just waste of money on electricity bill but also waste of scarce resource (in my country, electricity is scarce). So, principally, it was not acceptable to me. I am so happy to discover that air pump is not essential to the whole process. Would appreciate if you could also confirm if both the plants bear the same quality of fruit.
Thanks for the awesome content once again. Much appreciated.
Both plants had fruits that were similar, but I eventually stopped using the air pump, I didn’t keep it active the entire plant lifecycle. You can grow without an air pump just fine. The Kratky method is real and it works!
@@JimmyBHarvests Thanks, much appreciated.
As far as algae goes that's because u using white buckets use dark ones
If have them out side paint over the black tho with white paint to reflect the sun so water don't get hot
Or wrap bucket in tin foil
Is that Calgary?
Toronto
I love this you are blowing my mind. I'm a second generation canna farmer and I started out growing with all the old stereotypes. But education an information has changed the game. Dudes are just mad on how much they spent on there DWC setup 🤣. Then your over here just putting plants in water getting the same results.
😂😂 the jury is still out on air pumps in my opinion! You’re right that these dudes are mad though - being told I need an air pump is probably the number 1 comment I receive 😂
@@JimmyBHarvests 100%. Even the guy at the counter of my local hydroponics shop kept telling me that hydroponics wouldn't work without an air pump/stone. It wasn't until the manager/owner came out and explained Kratky (to the employee) that the guy realized I wasn't crazy.
The owner DID say plants grow faster with air movement though.
What kind of fertilizer did you buy or make?
It’s the Advanced Nutrients base series Micro Grow & Bloom
Having translucent buckets and algae growth skews the results as both plants are not growing in the same conditions. The more algae the more nutrient loss occurs in the buckets which means less for the plants.If you are comparing DWC Vs Kratky then aeration and nutrient solution replacement should be the only variables. One benefit to DWC is there are less air roots produced which allows refilling the buckets with nutrient solution causing less stress on the plant. Alternately refilling a Kratky bucket with more nutrient solution should if it run out prior to growth completion may drown the plant's roots as 80% of them are air roots.
The Krakty plant is a bit larger
What kind of nutrient solution did you use? Total noob here
Advanced nutrients - link in description to amazon
Make sure you use food grade air stones, I know that some cheap aquarium air stones use carcinogens in the material they use to make the stones, would not want that in my system. May also alter plant growth.
A great tip! Hadn't considered that
It's exactly what I am about to try to do with my peppers and now I'm not sure if it's worth it
The small gains in growth aren’t worth the noise of the air pump IMO. All depends on your space/set up. Best of luck with your plants!
Nice painting.
shoutout to www.butternutbutternut.com the best artist going!
I think if you are growing something with short season like lettuce Kratky works great but anything else use pump.
A quick fix: Set the buckets into a black plastic bag to help kill the light, but loosely gathered near the plant's bottom stem. But leave some breathing room for the roots. Algae seems to smother the roots, or at least retard their growth.
Hey Jimmy hope all is well. It seems my tomatoes, peppers and zucchini grew just as well with my kratky method vs water pump method : about the same. Then, I did an experiment with 3 kinds of lettuce. Using the NFT method & kratky method. The lettuce grew better with the NFT method. I am beginning to think that smaller greens/ ie smaller plants or plants that require less nutient ratio like leafy greens benefit from the extra oxygenation of the NFT system. The NFT System I used were piping that ran water through a snake of tubing.
A circulation pump would oxygenate the water better than an air pump. The oxygen exchange happens at the surface of the water when it's moving.
Thanks for sharing, haven't heard that before
@@JimmyBHarvests
I'm also an ex aquarium keeper and was into living reef tanks so I had to learn a lot about oxygen exchange and how it takes place.
I would recommend waiting for the flowering and fruit stage to make the scientific experiment valid. At vegetative stage, seems to be no different!
Agreed!
Need black tubing light travels through and down transparent tuning. Kinda bodged the experiment dont even need to ask for any more info like size of air pump, nutrients, ph and mychorrizie bacteria
I use half gallon paper wax milk jugs turned on their side AirStone no algae
The camo buckets at Atwood’s are not translucent. All other colors are.
Ì don't understand this video as an unexperienced grower I'm trying to look up some information. You're telling there is not a lot of difference with or without an airpump, although I see a difference. Look at how the leaves a hanging/behaving. However, what does this mean for the end result? What is the end result? It makes no sense to make a video without a result.
There was little to no difference between the two plants grown here. Both produced fruit just fine. The kratky (aeration free) method can work well, so can pumps. Ive seen some people document bigger larger fruits with air pumps, but they took considerably longer to grow and harvest. The real point i think is that both options work well, do what works best for your own space/garden. Good luck.
Maybe next time you could add some soluble Mycorrhizal to the water reservoir.
Re-do. Black buckets. Bigger air stones and air pump. Algae was an issue.
Maybe, the larger root mass doesn't matter as much during the vegetation phase of growth. Flowering can be a particularly intensive phase of growth. In the case of cannabis, it may be that plants with a larger root mass going into flowering (all else being equal) are a bit more efficient at taking nutrients up during this intensive phase of growth, which could increase flower and/or cannabinoid yields in comparison.
Yea, I agree Austin. Lots of variables involved hard to determine what’s what. I’m going to try another race with cannabis plants and we’ll see what happens!
do this again with buckets that don't take in so much light
Definitely plan to!
use 1 tbls of peroxide per gallon for algae.
🙏
I have watched dozens of hydroponic videos lately as I am about to have a go, but in all the videos nobody has mentioned hydrogen peroxide. I give my indoor ornamentals a bit of H2O2 a couple of times a year & they love it. I have wondered how come nobody has mentioned that before. About time somebody did RoundnRound.
Good Vid Im try a grow with no pump
Thanks! Good luck with your grows!
Kratky works, it just grows slower
This is 4 years old, but buying black buckets with lids eliminates algae completely.
You cant do a comparison with transparent buckets buddy.
🤗
Didn't he just do that? I think he just did👍🏾😁
@@paulmangwengwe9284 😂
If you paint your pots black you won't have an algi issue in my eyes. You can even pant them back white ontop of the black as long as there is a black layer to block light 💯✌💚
The agae is taking oxygen from the water so the larger root system needs to grow larger to get oxygen. That's my thought anyway.
An interesting thought!
You have to black out the buckets. Light is obviously shining through plastic making the algae grow.
From your video and from looking into other videos on aeration in general. I've gathered that aeration definitely makes the root structure thicker, longer, and stronger. Now I can imagine that if this was a tree that was to be planted into the ground... Maybe the roots will establish themselves better than the nonaerated tree. Also perhaps the roots are only longer because the movement of water causes them to grow stronger, the same as a fan blowing the top side of the plant. This swaying movement tells the plant to strengthen its stems it seems, as it is adapting to its environment. I am a student of biodiversity and the environment who is going into bioscience... I've learnt a lot along the way, though I feel this whole idea needs further study. I believe that the best thing you can do for your plant is to create a truly balanced environment, and perhaps even an ecosystem. But the environment is the most important thing for a plant... So lighting, temperature, humidity, nutrients, water and drainage... And water flow for hydroponics. Transpiration is a key element of growth for non-submerged plants, transpiration is what essentially creates the upwards water pressure that allows for growth. I think your best bet is to aerate the water using a dissolved Oxygen Emitter. Then add that water to the plant pot, perhaps then there may be a different result. But I could wonder about this for hours, and so deeper study and experiments need to be done. I am learning this and I'm sure there are many people out there who already know it, but I do believe the environment the plant is in needs to be 100% controlled and monitored with all factors taken into consideration. My favourite thing about all this is the thought of making a capsule that can survive in space and grow food. It is the year 2021 and now it is our mission as humans to master our enviroment and improve life for all living things.
Lots of research still to be done in this area I think. Aside from what’s truly ‘optimal’, we can do do just fine in our personal gardens keeping things quite simple.
I dont know much about kratkey but adding beneficial bacteria to it may help 🤔
thanks for the tips Art! will look into them!
buy black buckets. your local hydro shop has them. use the pump.