Aerogarden says you can use Vacation Mode to safely leave your plants away for about 2 weeks. I've gone away for as long as 3 weeks and successfully kept my plants alive, with a couple other tricks, which I'll share below!
I have the bounty aerogardens. They have a vacation mode option which shortens the light cycle making the plants use less water. So if you don't have that option on yours, you could set your light cycle to run for less hours than it normally does.
Considering that a rather high portion of my electric bill is fixed, the cost of adding in an indoor garden is minimal. But exactly how much does an Aerogarden cost to run? About $1-3 dollars, depending on the size of the garden.
First, an explanation, which was grounded in the reality we faced last fall. Despite creating the tabletop hydroponic gardening category 20 years ago, the market had been challenging these past few years. And that's why we made the tough decision to wind down the business.
You can also turn off the light on the unit - there's a dedicated button. The plants get a bit less grow time but it's not a big deal to turn the light off a couple hours early when needed.
Aerogarden says you can use Vacation Mode to safely leave your plants away for about 2 weeks. I've gone away for as long as 3 weeks and successfully kept my plants alive, with a couple other tricks, which I'll share below! But as a warning – I don't recommend leaving your plants away for too long.
Your LED lights will turn ON and OFF once to confirm a new Light on time has been set. Your Grow Lights will now come ON at this time each day and will stay ON for 15 hours.
The type of plant you are growing and the tending and harvesting it receives will impact the life expectancy of any plant. Flower varieties typically grow for 4-5 months and can last much longer depending on tending and care. Lettuces & Greens typically grow for about 4 months.
One popular example was AeroGarden, an indoor hydroponic garden setup with its own smartphone app to manage growing conditions. Last week, parent company Scotts Miracle-Gro, which acquired AeroGarden in 2020, announced it would be shutting down the product line after the end of the year.
Instead of growing in soil, the plants grow in a rich nutrient solution that delivers a consistent supply of food directly to each plant's roots. Each AeroGarden unit is designed for an automatically regulated hydroponic growing experience.
It's super easy to put together, and because the garden has a grow light, you can place it anywhere in your home, even if there's not a whole lot of natural light. This also means you can grow produce year-round! Not only is the AeroGarden easy to control, but it yields amazingly beautiful plants.
If you read and follow all the instructions on all labels and manuals—fertilizer, pesticides, aerogarden—you should be able to safely eat the food you grow in your aerogarden. If the plants are on the “generally regarded as safe” list, and you grow healthy plants, they should be safe for consumption.
Your Aerogarden may become infested with indoor garden pests, much like any other indoor plant. However, you're growing things to eat here and so chemicals are a definite no - even if you use them outdoors, you don't want to be using them in your home.
The best time to make the move from an AeroGarden seed starting system to soil is when the seedling grows its first set of true leaves. At this stage, roots have penetrated the grow sponges, but they are not yet long and entangled with one another.
Miracle-Gro Has a Negative Impact on Your Garden Soil
Your plants will get a quick boost of nutrients, but what'll happen is your soil health and fertility will actually decrease. That's right. Using synthetic fertilizers disrupts your soil pH and leads to a buildup of salts and chemicals your plants can't use.
Miracle-Gro Plant Foods for Indoor Plants
While these Miracle-Gro plants foods are not compatible with AeroGarden hydroponic garden units, they are the perfect and easy solution for your various houseplant needs.
AeroGarden Is Going Out of Business, But You Can Still Buy Select Smart Gardens for 50% Off on Amazon.
The AeroGarden light timer runs for 15 hours. Which 15 hours of the day is up to you. The manual comes with easy instructions on how to set your timer. If you've got your plants in a spot with little or no natural light, you could even have your light on at night while you sleep.
What can you grow with an Aerogarden? Aerogarden sells pods for herbs (basil, parsley, cilantro, thyme, mint, dill, chives), as well as salad greens, tomatoes, and peppers.
We recommend trimming your AeroGarden roots for the first time after about 4 weeks. This gives your plants plenty of time to establish a healthy and stable root system.
Typically the LED lights last at least 3-5 years. We have replacement parts for you if purchase at a low cost if you ever to need to replace part of your AeroGarden. And if anything happens during the first year, those replacement parts are provided free of charge under our 1-year manufacturer warranty.