1st Yellow Pear Tomato Harvest

140 g total from 12 tomatoes

First Mulberry

Strawberry

24 grams. Soil grown. It tasted ok...

Tomato Trees

Full view of the yellow pear cherry tomatoes. The biggest ones are ~4 feet tall and have loads of fruit and blooms on them. The other two are not doing as well and are just now rebounding from having their tops cut off.

Mulberry Update

Mulberry tree with tons of healthy new growth. Hopefully, the fast growth will continue through the transition to a drip system in grow rocks. This will happen once the new water pump arrives.

Assorted Tomato Seedlings

Tote that will house 4 different types of compact tomatoes and tomatillos. The back row is tomatillos with verde on the left and purple on the right. The front row is Black Trifele on the right and will have Black Krim on the left once the seeds arrive.

New Strawberry Clones

Today I attached some of the runners from the hydro strawberries to rapid rooters in cups filled with grow stones. Once the roots reach the liquid we will sever the umbilicals. All of the excess runners (and one flower bud!!!) were trimmed in order to encourage more foliage growth after nutrient burn forced us to remove quite a few leaves with burned tips. The effect of the high nutrient levels can be seen in the under-curling of many of the bigger leaves.

The plant at the top of the image with light green leaves is our spare spaghetti squash that, despite serious nutrient burn, is still out growing the one with its own bucket. We should toss it since we don't have room for any more vining plants, but we can't help wanting to see if it will keep going. It may end up with a bucket of its own as well.

A close up of the clones pinned to rapid rooters using extra bobby pins I had laying around.

We should also note that we almost lost an air pump today. After nutrient solution leaked back into our air pumps and onto the floor a few times, we purchased back flow stop valves, but added them a few hours too late. One of them stopped working but Chris opened it up, found where the circuit had been broken due to corrosion and fixed it!! For now, this resurrected pump will serve as a back up and the strawberry and tomato totes will be run off the same pump.

Pomelo clone

We started this clone close to two months ago without any root growth. We took the cutting off a lemon tree's root stock. Cutting at a 45 degree angle. No scarring. Just a little cloning hormone. Last week, we replaced the rapid rooter and scarred the tip and within a week there was signs of root growth.

New Strawberry

The first strawberry we harvested from our mother plants growing in soil. Unfortunately, the fruit was still unripe at the top even though the bottom was already starting to break down. In addition, the strawberry was rather tasteless. This might indicate a potassium deficiency, so I will be increasing the concentration of Foliage Pro that I am using to feed them.

A close up of the bottom the strawberry where it is starting to become mushy.

Chamomile cuttings/clones

10 cuttings of chamomile, which will go im a single bucket if/when they root. Using Rapid Rooter and cloning powder.

Blueberries

Replaced medium with Growrocks. No transplant shock.

Mulberry putting out flowers

After freezing during transport and loosing all of its leaves, I was worried my mulberry tree would go dormant for a while. But instead it put out new leaves AND flowers! When the new growth slows a bit, I will transplant the little guy into hydroponics/soilless media.

Pink lemonade blueberry plant with its new leaves. We had to add mylar and treat the soilless media with neem oil several times in order to knock out a white hairy mold that had started to grow on the surface and walls of the basket. This is most likely because peat is excellent at retaining moisture. Combined with a constant supply of water via the dripper, this is a perfect home for mold and fungus. Luckily, this type of mold is not really harmful and can be used as a soil additive.

The Jersey blueberry has started producing buds so we should see some new baby leaves soon.

Japanese Trifele Tomato

Moved our Japanese Trifele Tomato seedling to a bucket. 

Citrus Trees

New leaves emerging from the dwarf clementine tree. This marks the end of a tense period of leaf drop and twig die back that I was sure would leave the clementine in the same state as the Meyer lemon below. I attribute its resurrection to the transplant into gritty mix soilless growing media. A link to the exact mix can be found on the resources page. 

The Meyer lemon 'twig' now appears to be dying as well (note the discoloration). I had hoped it would bounce back after being put in Al's gritty mix like the clementine did and I thought I noticed some new growth, but most likely I will be buying a new lemon. Luckily the local garden center just got a huge shipment of what look like 5 year old citrus trees complete with fragrant flowers and setting fruit.

Tomato fruit

Strawberry Update

First strawberry turning red!

Runner creeping out of hydro strawberry. We will root and runners we get and double the number of strawberry plants we have.

Strawberry Roots

Yellow Pear Tomato root system

Spaghetti Squash.

This squash took off. It might be from its ability to take in high nutrient levels. We will add this to a 5 gal bucket soon. The root system is looking great.  

Yellow Doll Watermelon

Started our Yellow Doll Watermelon by Monsanto. It's in a 5 gallon DWC setup for the watermelon's large root system. First time using Growrocks as a hydroponic medium.

Blueberries, zucchini, and squash

Harvested daisies with AquaFarm.

Blueberry plants freshly placed in soilless sphagnum peat and pine mix for acidity with added holly tone for nutrients. Left: pink lemonade. Right: jersey. Both are fed recycled water via drip system.

Now leafless mulberry after it got frost bitten during transit. If the buds put out new leaves it will get transplanted into a soilless mix as well.

Strawberries sharing a bucket with spare zucchini and squash due to a 100% germination rate.

Whole hydro setup.

Tomatoes and newly potted spaghetti squash (left) and zucchini (right).

Strawberry and blueberry totes.

Close up of pink lemonade blueberry sprouting its new leaves.

Close up of the first blooms on the hydroponic yellow pear tomatoes.

Hydro & Soilless Plants

2-3 foot (1 month old) Yellow pear cherry Tomatoes in deep water culture hydroponics. First blooms about to open. Soon tomatoes cages will be required.

Dwarf clementine and leafless Meyer lemon in soilless gritty mix with drip irrigation on a timer. I am hoping that the lemon with put out new leaves soon now that its in a warmer place with more reliable light, water, and nutrient supplies.

One of zucchini and spaghetti squash starters nearly ready for hydro. They will be trained up a trellis against the wall to save space. Watermelon seeds are coming and will be done in the same manner.

A sucker from the lemon that we are trying to root. It should be a palmello.

Strawberries, pink lemonade blueberry plant, and frost bitten mulberry tree under intense grow light (camera trying to compensate). Blueberry and mulberry will go into soilless setups this weekend after a trip to the local hydro store.

Close up of the pink lemonade blueberry plant with its new green leaves emerging!