Thanks Sim! I'll post updates throughout the season. I just put them outside on the porch a couple days ago. They should start to take off with real sunlight. I topped them both off with nutrients then too, and can tell they used over a gallon combined since I set them up. I'm sure that'll increase as they get bigger.Superhot Sim said:
I just took a pic of them this morning. The SWC one is starting to catch up, but both seem to be doing well. The leaves on the SWC appear to be a little bigger. One concern I have with the wick bucket is the water becoming stagnant early on. I've been doing frequent top offs, overfilling so maybe some of the old solution will be pushed out. I think that'll help. It'll be interesting to see how they compare at season end. Also, I'm wondering if lowering the max reservoir height would improve it.deep_roots said:
Both were getting MasterBlend 4-18-38 with Epsom Salt and Calcium Nitrate. I switched them over to Dyna-Gro 7-9-5. Once they are mixed they stay homogenous. If it's mixed properly it won't separate back out. The one on the right with the cloth wick is just one bucket, but the other one, the self-watering system using two buckets. The nutrients are added to the bottom bucket of that one through a fill pipe. There is an overflow that keeps it from filling too much. That one is more of a proven method. The cloth wick bucket is an experiment. So far it seems to be working fine, but I think it might perform better with a lower nutrient level. This would allow a little more air to the roots. I'll probably setup one or two more that have a lower nutrient level to compare those with the first ones I made.Jedidiah578 said:
I'm very curious about this comparison since it seems that, assuming the wicking system provides at least an equivalent size plant and pepper yield, its obvious advantage is that it requires far less soil/medium than the traditional method. I have about ten double-bucket set-ups and go through quite a lot of soil (have not gotten into hydroponics - yet) to set them up. It would also seem with the wicking method that the water reservoir is significantly larger. I am all about minimizing my work!I have two sets of these going, White Devil's Tail and CARDI Yellow Scorpion. I think one of the CARDI Yellow Scorp might crossed so it's not a good comparison. The White Devil's Tails are both doing very well. It's hard to tell which is better since they are so close together. I'll pull them out and do a follow up video soon showing the progress of each. Overall, I think the swc looks better, has bigger leaves, but both producing about the same. I'm back and forth on which one I think is best. I show them in my grow update videos but it's hard to tell differences since they very close to each other. Here are some recent grow updates than show them. Thanks for asking about it, I'll put up an update this weekend.hubby11 said:How about an update?
The two plants are from the same seed stock, started at the same time. I just posted a new update on them. It seems the deep reservoir wick bucket induces sort of a small pot effect with earlier fruiting. The earthbox type self watering container produces a bigger plant, that takes longer to fruit. I think by end of the season it will have performed better overall. I top them off every three days, but the deep reservoir wick bucket could go much longer without needing a refill. The swc one needs refilling at least every two days. So there are trade offs. The refilling issue could be mitigated with a constant feed float valve type system.hubby11 said:
I add nutrients each time, 1 tsp/gal of Dyna Gro. For the self watering container one that has the potting mix, you could use slow release fertilizer mixed into that, then use just water when filling. What I'm using is mostly inert so I feed with hydroponic nutrients each watering.guested said:
