AeroGarden 7-Pod manual

Plan t & Grow Y our Own Seeds * *Seeds not included GUIDE Quick, Plug & Grow TM Planting with Y our Own S eeds M A S T ER G A R D EN ER English[...]

Introduction Introduction .................................... 3 Additional Supplies Needed ..................... 4 Designing Y our Garden Plant Type ....................................... 5 Plant Height ..................................... 5 Nutrients ........................................ 6 Life Span ........................................ 6[...]

T ending Y our Garden Remove Domes ................................ 17 Add Water and Raise Lamp Hood (Light[s]) ...... 18 Thin Plants ..................................... 18 Pollina te Plants ................................. 19 Prune Plan ts .................................... 20 Keep Y our Garden Healthy ...................... 23 Support Plants[...]

I n t r o d u c t I o n 3 Introduction Each Master Gardener Kit is designed for Aer oGardeners who want to plant their own see ds or root their own cut tings. Each ki t includes the supplies ne ede d to plant and grow one to three custom gardens. While the AeroG arden provides the id eal environment for growing plants , there are many decisions you[...]

4 Introduction In addition to what is included in y our Master Gardener Kit, there are a fe w additional items you will need . A dditional Supplies Ne eded An AeroGarden An Iron A Permanent Marker Seeds Plant Cuttings Whe th er t his i s the fi rst o r fif t h gar de n you are pla nti ng in you r Aero Ga rde n, you w ill n ee d to ref ere nce yo [...]

5 Designing Y our Garden d e s I g n I n g Y o u r g a r d e n P lant T ype While we encourage y ou to try growing a variety of plant types in your AeroGarden, there are a f ew tha t will not do well in an aeroponic system. Subterranean plants , such as carrots, beet s, potat oes or peanuts should not be planted in an A eroGarden. In addition, plan[...]

6 Designing Y our Garden P lant Heigh t ( Co nti nu ed ) If you decide to grow a garden with a variety of different plants , you will also need to consider their relativ e heights. T r y to grow plants tha t will be about the same height as they mature. Y ou may be able to prune some plants in your Garden to achiev e this. Using plants that gro w a[...]

7 Designing Y our Garden P lant Habit & La yout Some plants are bushy , others feathery , some grow straight, others branch out. As you plant your Garden, think about shape and growth habits of plants. Y ou may want to put a fea thery leafed plant in front where it can be seen and use the back row for plan ts that grow straight or bushy . Ev en[...]

8 Building a Grow Pod B u I l d I n g a g r o w P o d N umber of Seeds It is impor tant to plant extra seeds to ensure success. F or larger seeds and fruiting plants , sow only a few e xtra seeds. Increase number of seeds as seed siz e decreases and for plants that gro w in bunches, such as chives. T ypic ally , 6 seeds per Grow Pod w orks well. P [...]

9 Building a Grow Pod P lace Seeds & Grow S ponge • Place seeds into Dibble (hole located on end of Grow Sponge ). • Insert Grow Sponge into Split-Apart Basket . • Make sure Grow Sponge base rests in bottom of Split-Apart Basket .[...]

10 Building a Grow Pod A ttach Pod Labels The Pod Label r eminds you of planting date and wha t you planted , and also promotes germination and inhibits algae growth. Be sure to fill out and apply Pod Labels . IMPORT ANT! If you are planting SEEDS in y our Grow P ods … Attach P od Labels AFTER Grow P ods are assembled and seeds are in place. If [...]

1 1 Building a Grow Pod Using stem cuttings is a common metho d for propagating many plant varieties , but it do es require a bit of care on your par t . A number of vege tables an d shrubs root ver y easily , but stem cut tings from tree species can b e dif ficult to root . We ha ve found that some dif fi cult species may be s timulated to root [...]

1 2 Building a Grow Pod • Moisten Grow Sponge and insert cutting 1/3 to 1/2 of its length into Grow Sponge . • Carefully push Gro w Sponge (with cutting in place) through Pod Label and into Split-Apart Basket. • Insert assembled Grow Pod into Grow Surface Opening (see page 13 for instructions). • Repeat above st eps with each cutting and Gr[...]

1 3 Planting Y our Garden P l a n t I n g Y o u r g a r d e n P lant Gro w P ods Planting a custom Grow P od is the s ame as pl anting a Seed Pod from any A eroGarden Seed Kit. We recom - mend recording th e planting date and number of see ds planted in a notebo ok or on a mo del- specific Gardener ’s Log ( located at w w w.aerogarden support .c[...]

1 4 Feeding Y our Garden F e e d I n g Y o u r g a r d e n Each Master Gardener Kit comes with two diff erent types of nutrient tablets to meet the needs of a variety of plant types. The amount of nutrients in your Garden increases with tablet size. Each tablet also contains ingredients that will keep the water in your A eroGarden at a pH lev el th[...]

1 5 Feeding Y our Garden N utrient F eeding Schedule Options Options A B C D Plant Description Set Up S (1), S (2) S (1), S (2) S (1), S (2) S (1), S (2) Week 2 S (1), S (2) S (1), S (2) S (1), L (2) S (1), S (2) Week 4 S (1), S (2) L (1), L (2) L (1), L (2) S (1), S (2) Week 6 S (1), S (2) L (1), L (2) L (1), L (2) S (1), S (2) Week 8 S (1), S (2)[...]

1 6 Feeding Y our Garden A dd Nutrient ( s ) Ever y 2 week s you w ill ne ed t o add on e (1) nutrient tab let ( 3 -Po d Aero Gar dens ) o r two ( 2 ) nut rie nt tab let s ( 6 - or 7-Pod Aero Gar den s ) to th e Bowl . For instruc tions, see “Add Nutr ients” (Feed Garden - Basic F eeding) in the Control P anel Features section of your Quick St [...]

1 7 T ending Y our Garden t e n d I n g Y o u r g a r d e n A little bit of care for your Garden will ensur e rapid growth and health y plants. This sec tion provid es some general guid elines to follow as your Garden grows . R emov e Domes • Shortly af ter planting Seeds in your garden (4 da ys to 2 weeks), tiny plants will appear through the ho[...]

1 8 T ending Y our Garden T hin P lants Herbs , lettuc es, and plants that g row in bunches (such as chives) do not requir e thinning . Howev er , with broad-stemmed varieties , such as fruiting plants , it is best to thin plants as described below . • When plants ar e about 1” (2.5cm) tall, check each Grow Pod for multiple plants. Using scisso[...]

19 T ending Y our Garden P ollinat e Plan ts The t able belo w sho ws som e comm on plan t types and recommended methods for hand pollina tion. F or plants not listed below , you may need to do some additional pollination research – the internet and seed suppliers are good sources of inf ormation. HELPFUL HINT: If you find your Garden is produci[...]

20 T ending Y our Garden Y our Garden may need pruning to k eep plants at about the same height and to contr ol growth. Use garden shears or scissors to prune. Here are some gen - eral guidelines on pruning various plant types. Fruiting P lants with Upright Main Stem (F irst prune) (such as dwarf tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant) Early pruning of th[...]

21 T ending Y our Garden P rune P lants ( Co nti nu ed ) Fruiting P lants (Ongoing) ( Co nti nu ed ) Controlling Spreading Use scissors to cut branches that hang outside the e dge of Lamp Hood . Make cut so branch is no more than 3” beyond outer e dge of Lamp Hood. Herbs with Upright Main Stem – Sometimes an early pruning of plants such as basi[...]

22 T ending Y our Garden All Non-F ruiting Plants – If you see flo wer buds or flowers on a plant that is being gr own for its lea ves , not its fruit or flowers , remov e them. Cut flow ering stem just above a set of lea ves , no more than 1/3 of the way down stem. This will e x - tend the life and produc - tivity of the plant. Flow ers – [...]

23 T ending Y our Garden K eep Y our Garden Healt h y S upport Plants Keeping a wa tchful ey e on your Garden is not only a joy , but also a smar t wa y to make sure y our plants stay health y . As plants grow , you may see some dead or br own leav es around base of plants. T his is per fectly normal. • Remove these lea ves with scissors or pinch[...]

24 T ending Y our Garden How T o Suppor t Fruiting Plan ts • Loop a tie around main stem at a point where it: a) is strong enough not to bend or break when tie is secur ed , and b) stands upright when tie is pulled toward Lamp Arm . • T ightly loop one end of tie around Lamp Arm . Hold tie in position with one hand. With other hand , gently pul[...]

25 T ending Y our Garden Support for Full-Size F ruiting Plants If you are growing full-siz e, fruiting plants using an AeroGarden Deluxe , PRO 200 , 6 Elite + , or a 7-Pod model outfitt ed with a Deluxe Upgrade Kit , we r ecommend using the AeroGro w T rellis System* to support your plants. T rellis Systems and additional T rellis Coils can be or[...]

26 Harvesting Y our Garden H a r v e s t I n g Y o u r g a r d e n H arvest Y our Garden If you grow culinary plants , it is impor tant to con tinu - ally harvest to keep plants health y and produc tive . Here are some general guidelines f or harvesting plants grown in an Aer oGarden. • Do not remove mor e than a third of leav es or stems from an[...]

27 Harvesting Y our Garden Bunching Herbs (such as chives and parsley) • Harvest herbs that grow in a bunch by cutting an entire stem – just a stem, not the entire plant! • Select the oldest stems, found near outer edges of plant. ( These stems are generally wider than younger ones and leaves may have some yello w around the edges.) • Cut n[...]

a P P e n d I x 28 Appendix T roubleshooting What do I do when a Gro w Bulb burns out? Replacement bulbs can be ordered from y our retailer or at www .aerogardensuppor t.com. What should I do if m y Grow Bulb(s) aren ’t working? Make sure Grow Bulb(s) are firmly inserted in Lamp Hood . Also check that Garden is plugged into a working electri - c[...]

29 Appendix T roubleshooting ( Co nti nu ed ) My Garden doesn’ t lo ok healthy . What can I do? If you are concerned about the health of y our Garden, please go through the following… • Keep light(s) as close to plants as possible , without leaves t ouching Grow Bulb(s) . • Replace Grow Bulb(s) every 6 months (see Quick Start Guide for mode[...]

30 Appendix growing in Bowl . Choose a material that will tolerate moisture such as aluminum foil or a plastic milk jug lid . What if one of the plants in m y AeroGarden is much taller than the others? Despite all your planning , you ma y find a plant in your garden that is growing fast er than the others. T ry prun - ing the plant to keep size in[...]

507314-0000 AA 8/28/08 U.S. Patents P ending © 2007-2008 AeroGro w International, Inc. AeroGr ow International, Inc. Quick Start Guides available at: www .aerogardensuppor t.com[...]