A miniature garden - inside
Written: Jan 26 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Allows lots of herbs to grow in a relatively small amount of space.
Cons: Close watching is needed to make sure the seeds germinate properly. Extra seed kits expensive.
The Bottom Line: I liked the Aero Garden. It does what it says it does, and when there's a problem, they support it. It's expensive, but that will change over time.
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| Godai-kun's Full Review: Aerogrow Aero Garden |
I have never been what you would calla "good gardener." As a kid I always helped take care of the family vegetable garden, and eventually the pots of herbs that we kept on the back porch, but quickly discovered when I moved out that I could kill anything with leaves! I was interested in some of the hydroponic solutions that have popped up on the Internet over the last few years, but don't have several hundred or thousand dollars to drop on a full hydroponic system, much less space for it.
This explains why I was grabbed by the AeroGarden commercial which promised that I could grow a variety of herbs with no fuss, in a minimum of space. "Brilliant!" I thought. Basil in the middle of winter!
Setting up the Aero Garden was easy, following the instructions provided. I did run into a snag when one of the light bulbs had worked its way out of the package and gotten caught in the packing material. But overall, it took me maybe 30 minutes to set up the hydroponic unit, read through the enclosed "Getting Started" brochure, and plant my first crop of hydroponically-grown herbs.
The planting is really down to a science - herb seeds come pre-planted in small cups. You start with Basil, Red Basil, Parsley, Cilantro, Mint, Chives, and Dill. All you have to do is snap on a plastic greenhouse cover to each seed cup (to maximize humidity during the germination period), snap the cup into one of the holes in the Aero Garden, fill the water reservoir up to the indicated line, add a provided fertilizer pellet, set the Aero Garden for the type of plant you are growing (in this case, herbs), and hit start.
And that's really all you have to do for about the next 2 weeks, when the Aero Garden will notify you to add more water and fertilizer.
Well, at least in theory. I did run into a COUPLE of snags. Each of the seed cups is marked with the name of the plant as well as an estimate of how long it will take to germinate. I found these estimates to be extremely accurate - when the seeds germinated. Unfortunately in my first attempt at using the kit, two of the seven herbs failed to germinate at all, and one germinated, but quickly died. The three that prospered were spearmint (which previous experience tells me will stand up to earthquake, blight, and nuclear attack) and the two Basils.
After a reasonable interval, I called Aero Grow, and was told that the non-germination of the Cilantro, at least, was a known problem, and that they had replaced it in current kits with Thyme. So when you buy an Aero Garden, if it comes with the Cilantro seed cup, it's relatively old, and can be replaced by contacting the company.
Once everything germinated, the "leggier" herbs tended to shoot straight up instead of spreading out. This is a problem with the Aero Garden because if you raise the movable lamp to accomodate the taller herbs, the shorter ones may not get adequate light (a problem that container growers are VERY familiar with). Out of curiosity, just to see what they would say, I contacted Aero Grow. They responded with just the correct answer: prune back the taller herbs, making sure there remains enough to keep the plant going. This will force plant growth hormones down into the plant, and will encourage new growth at the soil level. Good support, Aero Grow!
The Aero Garden, used per instructions, does a nice job of providing herbs for a small household. If you have one or two herbs that you use a lot of, you can purchase a special kit from Aero Grow which will allow you to use your own seeds. An entire Aero Garden unit devoted to roducing Basil, for example, should be enough to satisfy even the most dedicated basil-lover.
Other seed kits are available for those who don't love herbs. You can get flowers of various types, chili peppers, tomatoes, lettuce, and even strawberries, in addition to several alternate herb lineups. These seed kits are relatively expensive, though. at $20 apiece on ebay, so long-term users will be very tempted to re-use the seed cups and use their own seeds and fertilizer. Aero Grow will not SUPPORT this use of the product, of course (they want to keep selling you seed kits...) but I can testify to the fact that it works, and is a lot cheaper.
All in all, I think the AeroGrow is a fun (if expensive) toy for people who want to dabble with hydroponics without the expense of a full-blown hydroponic setup. I got mine at a discount because the original owner had used it once, satisfied their curiosity, and decided to get rid of it. I expect that we will be seeing a lot of these items on Ebay as more and more people come to the same conclusion. But I plan to keep mine because it is a great way to have live herbs out of season.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Godai-kun
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 - Top 1000 |
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Member: Kevin Barth
Location: Silver Spring, Maryland
Reviews written: 248
Trusted by: 55 members
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