Aerogarden Herb Garden - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

dworkin31 · 02-05-2009, 09:27 AM

hxxp://www.aerogrow.com/

Has anybody every used this product? anybody have any 'indoor herb gardens' they use, like or recommend or not? I simply cant grow anything here. too cold too hot no consistent weather and i love fresh herbs. TIA!

braisler · 02-05-2009, 09:31 AM

I was tempted to get something like this myself, but the expense really made me shy away from it. I usually just throw some seeds in some dirt in a pot by the kitchen window and hope for the best. I've had decent luck growing basil this way.

There are also some herbs that you can grow that are actually very hardy and almost difficult to kill in most climates. Members of the mint family are usually pretty tough. In fact, it is advisable to place them in containers to grow since they can be pretty invasive otherwise.

dworkin31 · 02-05-2009, 02:31 PM

I have a dead thumb when it comes to growing anything. Rosemary and mint grow like wildfire, wherever i throw them. but dill, basil and thyme are difficult for me to keep alive.

The reason i asked this question is because this aerogarden is so expensive. Almost $200. That's a lot of $$ just to grow weeds.

Banshee · 02-05-2009, 02:34 PM

I often wondered if this could be used in other "herb" type gardens.. i've seen it on TV and it looks neat.

braisler · 02-05-2009, 03:39 PM

Banshee, I'm pretty sure that it can and has been used for this purpose. Almost all of the pot smokers I know have, at one time or another, tried to grow their own. And I understand that a lot of pot growing operations use hydroponics or at least overhead lighting like what the Aerogrow uses.

Basil is hit and miss for me when planted outside from seed. Fortunately seed packets are available almost everywhere for really, really cheap. I usually devote a little space in the garden near the kitchen to throw down some herb seeds or try to plant a few in a planter up on the deck. Planting from seed in multiple locations, different sunlight exposure, etc. can minimize the chances that you are going to fail at growing some of your favorites in at least one of those locations.

The only herb I have really never gotten good results with is also one of my favorites, cilantro. I have gotten it to sprout a few times and even put out a first few real leaves. Invariably, it then goes to seed after sending up one straight stalk, or just dies outright. I've read that it is more of a cold weather herb, so that may be the issue that I am encountering.

yabobo · 02-25-2009, 09:29 AM

The areo garden works wonders. It's easy and gives you plenty over about two months. Then it starts to die.
It is a bit expensive and they send you lots of adds to buy new add ons. I've grown the lettuce too. Not bad just not enough.
If you have cash to burn go for it!

shakran · 02-25-2009, 10:06 AM

I got one as a gift a few weeks back and am trying it out. If it hadn't been free, I'd never have gotten it. The starter pack of seeds (thyme, basil, and chives) are coming up. They sprout and grow pretty quickly, but seed packets are $20 (as opposed to like, what, 80 cents from Burpee?), you have to replace the bulb every six months which I'm sure will be 20 bucks or more, it runs constantly and therefore uses power (including 17 hours per day with the light on), and the unit itself starts at around $150.

And I'm sure my neighbors now think I have a marijuana grow thanks to the light always being on

For what it costs to get a couple months' worth of herbs, I don't see it as being worth it. Unless it outstrips my expectations by quite a bit, I'll probably shelve it after this crop is finished. For the price of the light bulb and seed pods, I can plant rosemary, chives, parsley and basil in a couple of small pots. They'll come up every year, need almost no maintenance except for occasional watering during a dry spell, and I'd still have money left over to buy the steak and potato to use them on.

02-05-2009, 09:27 AM	#1 (permalink)
dworkin31 Upright	Aerogarden Herb Garden hxxp://www.aerogrow.com/ Has anybody every used this product? anybody have any 'indoor herb gardens' they use, like or recommend or not? I simply cant grow anything here. too cold too hot no consistent weather and i love fresh herbs. TIA! __________________ The most dangerous madmen are those created by religion, and people whose aim is to disrupt society always know how to make good use of them on occasion.

02-05-2009, 09:31 AM	#2 (permalink)
braisler Addict Location: Midway, KY	I was tempted to get something like this myself, but the expense really made me shy away from it. I usually just throw some seeds in some dirt in a pot by the kitchen window and hope for the best. I've had decent luck growing basil this way. There are also some herbs that you can grow that are actually very hardy and almost difficult to kill in most climates. Members of the mint family are usually pretty tough. In fact, it is advisable to place them in containers to grow since they can be pretty invasive otherwise. __________________ --- You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother. - Albert Einstein ---

02-05-2009, 02:31 PM	#3 (permalink)
dworkin31 Upright	I have a dead thumb when it comes to growing anything. Rosemary and mint grow like wildfire, wherever i throw them. but dill, basil and thyme are difficult for me to keep alive. The reason i asked this question is because this aerogarden is so expensive. Almost $200. That's a lot of $$ just to grow weeds. __________________ The most dangerous madmen are those created by religion, and people whose aim is to disrupt society always know how to make good use of them on occasion.

02-05-2009, 03:39 PM	#5 (permalink)
braisler Addict Location: Midway, KY	Banshee, I'm pretty sure that it can and has been used for this purpose. Almost all of the pot smokers I know have, at one time or another, tried to grow their own. And I understand that a lot of pot growing operations use hydroponics or at least overhead lighting like what the Aerogrow uses. Basil is hit and miss for me when planted outside from seed. Fortunately seed packets are available almost everywhere for really, really cheap. I usually devote a little space in the garden near the kitchen to throw down some herb seeds or try to plant a few in a planter up on the deck. Planting from seed in multiple locations, different sunlight exposure, etc. can minimize the chances that you are going to fail at growing some of your favorites in at least one of those locations. The only herb I have really never gotten good results with is also one of my favorites, cilantro. I have gotten it to sprout a few times and even put out a first few real leaves. Invariably, it then goes to seed after sending up one straight stalk, or just dies outright. I've read that it is more of a cold weather herb, so that may be the issue that I am encountering. __________________ --- You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother. - Albert Einstein ---

02-25-2009, 09:29 AM	#6 (permalink)
yabobo Lust Puppy Location: in your closet and in your head...	The areo garden works wonders. It's easy and gives you plenty over about two months. Then it starts to die. It is a bit expensive and they send you lots of adds to buy new add ons. I've grown the lettuce too. Not bad just not enough. If you have cash to burn go for it! __________________ Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections? Only in America......do we use the word 'politics' to describe the process so well: 'Poli' in Latin meaning 'many' and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures'.

02-05-2009, 02:34 PM	#4 (permalink)
Banshee Tilted Location: Pepperland	I often wondered if this could be used in other "herb" type gardens.. i've seen it on TV and it looks neat.

02-25-2009, 10:06 AM	#7 (permalink)
shakran Tone.	I got one as a gift a few weeks back and am trying it out. If it hadn't been free, I'd never have gotten it. The starter pack of seeds (thyme, basil, and chives) are coming up. They sprout and grow pretty quickly, but seed packets are $20 (as opposed to like, what, 80 cents from Burpee?), you have to replace the bulb every six months which I'm sure will be 20 bucks or more, it runs constantly and therefore uses power (including 17 hours per day with the light on), and the unit itself starts at around $150. And I'm sure my neighbors now think I have a marijuana grow thanks to the light always being on For what it costs to get a couple months' worth of herbs, I don't see it as being worth it. Unless it outstrips my expectations by quite a bit, I'll probably shelve it after this crop is finished. For the price of the light bulb and seed pods, I can plant rosemary, chives, parsley and basil in a couple of small pots. They'll come up every year, need almost no maintenance except for occasional watering during a dry spell, and I'd still have money left over to buy the steak and potato to use them on.