Good news on the garden front

Last week I decided to plant some seeds in regular soil. I was pleasantly surprised to find sprouts in the basil pot already. I noticed them on Monday, but they seemed a little too small to show up in a photo. Yesterday they had really taken off and I snapped this picture today. So far, I can't see anything happening in the other pots, but I'm hopeful.

I also changed the hydroponic set up. The plastic starter tray was not working at all. I decided to take twelve 20 oz styrofoam cups and embed them in a wire grid. I put a slit in the bottom and four on the sides. Next I put the rooters into the cups and secured them with toothpicks. I'm really happy with the results so far.

I think one of the main problems with the tray was that the fish food would float over it and get caught on the rooters. The fish were probably bumping it because they knew the food was there. The hornwort was also washing up onto it and weighting it down.

Another thing I learned it that not all the rooters float. I skimmed the bottom of the pond with a net and recovered most, if not all, of them. Since I already had the problem with the fish food, I set the cups far enough apart that they could swim underneath and get to whatever food does rest next to the cups. I put the extra rooters in a plastic baggie so I can use them another time. Sphere: Related Content