With summer reported to be hot and dry, one of my salad crops is under threat of added milky sap creating bitter lettuce.
One way to keep lettuce sweet is constant moisture. Over winter I made a hydroponic can to grow a chilli plant in. This is a low tech,, cheap method. No pumps, flowing water, water tanks etc. Just a container, hydroponic mix, water and a plant.
Kratky method hydroponics is a container of nutrient mix with the plants roots going straight in. As the mix gets used up the roots grow longer and a air gap forms, the plants use this air gap and grow air roots. I have used net cups, but 2 skewers though the root ball will work g I e, reducing costs. Rather than mixing nutrients A and B, testing PH. Adding bloom mix or fruit mix etc, I have opted to use the Herb version of the chili mix I used. 5ml per litre of water and 27l in the container for 12 mixed lettuce.
The weather was perfect to spend time in the garage doing the set up. Between the showers I managed to plant out my red and orange Scotch bonnet chillies and 5 varieties of tomatoes in the first cage.
Hope the weather is kind to everybody.
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