I'm growing hydroponic tomatoes indoors

[Prof]

Last season I started to grow some tomatoes in large pots outside..

They were regularly watered and fertilized and I had a few tomatoes on the plants..

Then we started to get high daily temperatures reaching into the mid 40's.!!!..

Even with the plants sheltered with shade cloth..they all  died..

This was the second time that it had happened..the first being at another location..

I decided I wouldn't try again..and besides at my age it was becoming impracticable to do any further gardening..

Then one day I happened to come across an article about growing tomatoes all year round indoors.!! This perked up my interest again..

I discovered that one could grow tomatoes indoors in a hydroponic system.!!

I liked the idea because you didn't have to worry about bugs and insects getting at your plants..and the containers were at bench top height..so no bending..no watering and you can have tomatoes all year round.!!!

I've always imagined that hydroponics was just for growing Weed, with all sorts pumps and bubblers  with lights everywhere and using lots of electricity.!!

What I discovered is that with simple systems you can grow all sorts of herbs, vegetables and flowers..

There is a system called the Kratky method..It's basically having a container with liquid fertilizer and putting a seedling suspended in the liquid..That's it.!! No pumps or bubblers or expensive lighting..

Looking at you tube video's I found people were even using ice cream containers and large coffee jars to grow tomatoes in.!! Some used what they call in the US Mason jars..

The more sophisticated ones used plastic tanks and grew several plants in them..

I decided to give it a try..The best place I found was in the laundry..It's out of the way and I found that the space between the washing machine and the cupboard was ideal..

In my next post I will describe what I bought for the system and I'll show the little table I made to fit between that space..

[MitchellMc]

I'll be looking forward to it @Prof! Sounds very interesting indeed!

Mitchell

[Prof]

Well I'm afraid the collagen hasn't had any affect on the plants...

I suspect that the nutrients that I'm using are neutralizing the collagen..

If it's used in dirt gardens or pots, with only water added then it might just work..

In the mean time my tomato plants are starting to show signs of growth with some of the flowers now turning to tomatoes..

And at long last I have a maturing cucumber.!!

[EricL]

Hi @Prof 

Your plants look fantastic! It's good to see that you've got tomatoes on the vine. That cucumber should be nice and tasty when it fully grown.

Thanks for the update, we look forward to seeing your next update.

Eric

[Prof]

Thanks Eric...

It's been a fairly long drawn out process but at last I'm starting to get some results..

Hopefully I will get some quantity of tomatoes and others this time.!

[Prof]

Update August..

Well things have been progressing nicely..The cucumbers have now really taken off and are looking very healthy..

The current cherry tomatoes have been very productive and I'm still getting lots of flowers..ready to fruit again..

The new bigger tomatoes have taken along time to propergate, but are now beginning to get to the seedling stage..

The biggest change that I've made this time is to use the one brand nutrient type for all the plants..through propergation to fruiting..and it's been working brilliantly..and it comes from Bunnings!! 😊

Here are the latest photos..

[EricL]

Hi @Prof 

Thank you so much for the update, your plants are looking fantastic! What is the plant in the pot with the foil surround? Does the foil provide insulation?

Eric

[Prof]

Hi Eric..and thanks for the compliment...

The plant in the pot is one of the new tomato plants..and the same in the container next to it..

The foil around the glass jar is used to block out all light..It does also help to insulate the roots of the new seedlings..

[Prof]

Update September / 23

There has been some big changes...

The tomatoes that I had been growing for several weeks had lots of green leaves....but no flowers.!!

The cucumbers that I had started at the same time had tons of flowers...all male.!!

A couple females appeared but died off very quickly..And then the leaves started to get yellow spots..possibly caused by lack of nitrogen..

When I had started this lot of plants, I used the last bit of nutrients in the packets..There might have been some reduction in strength in the last bit or something..

The other thing I'm finding is that the Kratky method ( which is a static system ) requires constant supervision of the water level.!!

Bulk water / nutrients needs to be mixed up on a regular basis to keep up the supply to all the containers..and If you should  be away from home for a week

 or so the fluid levels can drop significantly.!! All in all..a number of problems..

So I decided to start all over again..I ripped out all the plants..emptied all the containers..and tore down the racking system..and removed the shelving..

Back to a bare wall.!! I decided to this time use the "Dutch Bucket System"..This is a self watering system which is a recirculating system with drip water feeds to the buckets..which contain the plants..

This system is used by commercial growers for it's self sufficiency .and minimal maintenance..

I'm currently in the process of buying all the equipment and have now set up new shelving.

When it's all set up I'll post some photos..

[EricL]

Hi @Prof 

Thank you for the update, I'm sorry to hear that Kratky method did not work out. I've seen the Dutch Bucket System, I hope you have more success with this method.

Eric

[Prof]

Thanks Eric...

I've had quite a bit of success with the Kratky method growing lettuces..So much so infact that I have a fridge full of lettuce leaves that I can't get through.!! 😊

But when it comes to cucumbers..not so much..I'm thinking also that the seeds that I bought online may not be up to scratch.!

I discovered that there is a particular type of cucumber called parthenocarpic that doesn't require any pollination !! The flowers are generally all female and don't  require any help.!!

So far I haven't been able to find any locally..