Day 39
UPDATE#8
Grower update
Update #8
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded 6 ml of nutrients.
Added 6ml of nutes.
GrowLog
UnknownFive Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard and Companion Plants in a Bounty
Grow log by ERR0R1755 · Original thread
8 visual updates9 photos31 replies
View recapCrop🥬Swiss chard, beet, basil, mung bean, mint
VarietyFive Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard
Method-
EquipmentAeroGarden Bounty Classic
Plants5
AudienceExperimental
What you can learnA strong mixed-garden case showing Swiss chard success alongside companion-plant failures and the root-management difficulties of mixed species.
Actions:4 Nutrients
Useful practices
- incremental nutrient additions
- harvesting chard leaves and stems
- removing failed companion plants
- fermenting chard stems and drying basil
Problems encountered
- beet failed to germinate or stopped growing
- mung bean repeatedly lost leaves
- mint pods failed to germinate
- Swiss chard shaded companion basil
- mixed roots complicated plant removal
*The days were calculated automatically and approximately.
Conversation
E
Tossed out the beet (but kept the beet greens!) today as it is no longer growing. I will harvest all of the swiss chard and end this project soon.
E
Ended this today. I'll write my review on just the swiss chard, since the rest didn't do well. (I think the basil would have done well, but the swiss chard shaded it out)I've set the swiss chard tops aside for a salad, and I'm fermenting the stems from the leaves. The basil I have hung (by the stem) to dry.Here's my self-survey:Plant Grown: Five Color Silverbeet Swiss ChardGrow Method: AeroGarden Bounty ClassicTime to Germinate: 5 daysTime to First Harvest: 24 days (since germination)Time to Last Harvest: 42 days (since germination)Plant Spacing: 3 per Bounty (33% usage) (could fit more in if wanted)Final Height: 1 footWould I grow these again? Definitely! They're beautiful and delicious, although the stems are bitter. I will have to see how the fermentation turns out.Lessons Learned: Starting mixed plants is difficult if you want to harvest or remove an entire plant, since you'll always end up leaving roots behind to rot.
Day 33
UPDATE#7
Grower update
Update #7
Conversation
S
The colors! I am goingvto have to grow chard, too!
E
They're really easy to grow! To be honest, I think I've been having an easier time with swiss chard than I have with lettuce.
E
The PPM dropped down to ~120, so I added 4ml of nutes.
Day 25
UPDATE#6
Grower update
Update #6
Everything is growing well! Off to the right, I have an (official) mint pod that I'm trying to get started. So far all three mint pods I've tried have failed to germinate, so maybe the fourth one will succeed?
Conversation
S
Looks good!!!
E
Added 4ml of nutrients. I might remove the mung bean, because it has been losing every set of leaves it grows - they just dry up and fall off. The stem seems healthy so I'm not sure what is causing that.
E
I ate one of the beet leaves tonight - they're a bit bitter and have a hint of spiciness, so I don't think they're for me. I'm looking forward to trying the root though!
E
Tried one of the (yellow) swiss chard leaves! It reminds me of spinach, but with a weaker flavor and without the bitter aftertaste.The yellow stems are pretty, I think I would even grow swiss chard just for decoration.The mint pod off to the side started to mush up and did not show any signs of sprouting, so I'm going to write that one off.Made a few other small changes today:1. Removed the mung bean plant, since it was not doing well. It kept growing new leaves that became speckled, then turned brown, dried, and fell off.It never had more than two sets of leaves at a time, which I've never had happen before.2. Removed a leaf from the (green) swiss chard that was overshadowing the basil.3. Cleaned up some of the small/dead leaves around the base of the swiss chard plants.
Day 20
UPDATE#5
Grower update
Update #5
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded another 4 ml of nutrients.
Added another 4ml.
Conversation
U
They are doing well! As for more than 1 from 1 seed...I did experience that with the rainbow chard.
S
The colors are showing. So pretty!
E
I'm not sure how well it shows up in the photos, but the two swiss chard in the middle are different colors - the left is more of a golden yellow, while the right is more of a greenish yellow.
Day 18
UPDATE#4
Grower update
Update #4
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded another 4 ml of nutrients.
Added another 4ml of nutes.
Day 11
UPDATE#3
Grower update
Update #3
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded 4 ml of nutrients after leaves began folding upward.
Added 4ml of nutrients today, since the leaves started to fold upwards.The pod in the back right is a Mung Bean, since the beet never germinated.
Day 5
UPDATE#2
Grower update
Update #2
Here's the beet (left) and swiss chard (right) seedlings:The beet wasn't something I originally planted in here - but I started a single seed in coco coir, and so far I've gotten three seedlings from it:
Day 1
UPDATE#1
Grower update
Update #1
No signs of germination yet. I will put the Cates Family Black Cowpeas I mentioned in my other thread in the two side slots.Considering putting something in that middle slot, but I have no idea what. Maybe another Tom Thumb Pea?
Conversation
E
So far one seed has sprouted with two seedlings, but it doesn't look good. I think these seeds are tougher and need to be soaked before planting.
S
Will you try soaking first and retrying
E
I'm going to give these a few more days, but if I don't see any more signs of progress, then I will.
E
A few more of the seedlings have sprouted and I've moved in some other stuff, so here's what the layout looks like at the moment.Back row: Five Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard, N/A, Five Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard (pending)Middle row: N/A, Five Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard, Five Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard, N/AFront row: Early Wonder Beet, Dark Purple Opal Basil
S
I am looking forward to seeing your photos. That sounds like an interesting mix.