GrowLog
Terminated Early

Four-Pod Swiss Chard Mix in an AeroGarden Farm 12XL

Grow log by lynnee · Original thread

4 visual updates5 photos9 replies
View recap
CropSwiss chard
VarietyHarris Swiss chard mix
MethodAeroGarden hydroponics
EquipmentAeroGarden Farm 12XL
Plants4
AudienceExperimental

What you can learnA short but useful mixed-seed trial showing how uneven Swiss chard cultivars can create shading and why sorting a blend before sowing may produce a more uniform crop.

Actions:1 Planting1 Equipment1 Finished
Useful practices
  • placing several visibly different seed types in each pod
  • using an always-on pump setting during early growth
  • sorting mixed seed by appearance for future single-variety trials
  • ending an uneconomical crop when it is no longer needed
Problems encountered
  • mixed varieties grew at very different rates
  • the fastest plant shaded slower plants
  • plants spread outward instead of forming compact upright bunches
  • crop passed the preferred harvest window and received limited maintenance

*The days were calculated automatically and approximately.

Day 43
UPDATE#4
Grower update

Update #4

Actions taken

FinishedEnded the Swiss chard planting at forty-two days.

L By lynnee

After 42 days, the Swiss chard is terminated, even though some of it is perfectly edible. It's a little past the optimal time for harvesting, and hasn't received the TLC it deserved.I was growing this for my husband--he needs a daily vitamin K veggie to go along with his anticoagulants--but I found some retail organic baby spinach that he likes. It's very well washed, and easy to fix in the microwave.There will be another time that's better for growing this. I don't like to grow boring stuff that we don't eat when electricity costs so much!
Day 28
UPDATE#3
Grower update

Update #3

L By lynnee

After 28 days, I have harvestable Swiss Chard! This planting is a bit disappointing, because the varieties in the seed mix are growing at wildly different rates. The fastest grower is blocking the light to the slower varieties, and is spreading out instead of producing the sort of compact upright bunch that you see at Farmers' Markets.I'm going to restart this garden soon, with seeds that are sorted so that I'll be growing one variety at a time. The seeds are easy to tell apart in the seed mix, though I don't know which are which.In the photo you can see chard that is all-green, white-ribbed, and red-ribbed.
Day 7
UPDATE#2
Grower update

Update #2

Actions taken

EquipmentChanged the Farm pump schedule to continuous operation.

L By lynnee

On Day 7, all four pods show some germination. I planted three seeds to each pod. Pump was changed to "always on".
Conversation
U
Unknown

An FYI... You have to be careful about changing the pump settings. I've found "always on" to be the best setting even for germination. On the bounty, when you plant a pod, it says something like the pump will be set to 1 hour on and 11 hours off AND THEN CHANGED TO THE BEST SETTING FOR YOUR PLANT. WELL... it looks like even if you intervene and change the pump settings manually, the bounty software will change it to what it has been programmed to be the best setting after about 2 weeks. I kept noticing that after I changed the setting to "always on" I found a few days later it wasn't set. Drove me nuts. SO, moral of this story is that for the bounty (and perhaps for the farm also) you should check the pump setting every few days for a month or so after a new planting just to verify it is what you set it to be.

L
lynnee

Thanks for the tip, @fsullom, That explains what happened with my latest Merlot lettuce--I had to change the pump setting even though I was pretty sure that I'd changed it before!

Day 1
UPDATE#1
Grower update

Update #1

Actions taken

PlantingStarted four pods of mixed Swiss chard seed in the Farm 12XL.

L By lynnee

Today I started four pods of Swiss chard in a Farm 12XL. Swiss chard is a great source of vitamin K. Husband has to eat vitamin K veggies, in measured amounts, because he's on warfarin.He loves Brussels sprouts and broccoli from the Farmers Market, but is now totally sick of both from retail grocery stores. For now I'm giving him spinach, because you don't have to eat very much of it to get a lot of vitamin K.Swiss chard grows well in AGs, so I'm hoping to get some harvests before he rebels against retail spinach!The Harris seed is a mix, and it seems to have three different seeds in it. I tried to get one of each in each pod. Maybe I should have tried each size seed in different pods, but that's another day's experiment!
Conversation
U
Unknown

You should have enough room in a farm to grow the Fordhook Giant Swiss Chard. I started it once and it germinated quickly if I remember I terminated it before maturity for some reason I no longer remember.

L
lynnee

That's something else to try, all right. I do wish that spinach was easier to grow in an AG. He likes everything that I grow hydroponically.

L
LoveSalads

With an ounce of seeds you should be able to do every type of experiment you would like. Curious if at 3-4 " tall it would be tender and play out like a mix salad. Looking forward to seeing pictures of your experiments and progress. I have always thought about trying Swiss Chard but I like the salad mixes I have now and of course the Merlot is awesome too.

L
lynnee

Photos of Swiss chard progress will be coming, LoveSalads. Three of the pods are showing germination activity. All have little water droplets on the grow domes, and I picked one up to verify.When I got my first Farm, a Farm Plus 24, I grew some lovely chard that could have come from a Farmer's Market.

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