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hydroponic B.A. Kratky Hydroponic Method - Float Valve Buckets & Fill-and-Forget Totes

Just curious why you'd want to go this route, when you have such good native soil.
 
You know what I'd give to have soil that I could actually grow in? 
 
Unless you're practicing for the apocalypse, I just don't get it... LOL
 
Walchit said:
I wanna try a kratky system
 
What?  You, too?!?!
 
Ok, I've grown in the actual soil that you have.  Your soil is amazing, and in no part of the country that I've lived in, have I ever grown better gardens than good ol' Kansas soil.  Kratky is one of the most impractical  ways to grow pepper, unless you're deep into the apocalypse, and you prefer potassium uptake over cesium.
 
What leads you guys into this method?  It's one of the very worst hydro methods, for plant health and yield.  Is it curiosity? (I can certainly respect that)  Or do you know something that I don't?
 
Again, I'm here on a sand dune, lusting for your soil, and you're trading great grows for 3rd world permaculture methods.  LOL
 
Typically Kratky encourages root growth but thats basically it. Its probably good enough to start your seeds to get a head start on growth
 
solid7 said:
Just curious why you'd want to go this route, when you have such good native soil.
 
You know what I'd give to have soil that I could actually grow in? 
 
Unless you're practicing for the apocalypse, I just don't get it... LOL
 
Soil is great, and I grew in soil for years.  My garden is far from a water source now, and my life got crazy busy.  This method allows me to set up the garden piece by piece as time allows, add all the water and food that is needed and leave for extended periods of time.  It is about as close as I can come to having the garden take care of itself.
 
solid7 said:
What?  You, too?!?!
 
Ok, I've grown in the actual soil that you have.  Your soil is amazing, and in no part of the country that I've lived in, have I ever grown better gardens than good ol' Kansas soil.  Kratky is one of the most impractical  ways to grow pepper, unless you're deep into the apocalypse, and you prefer potassium uptake over cesium.
 
What leads you guys into this method?  It's one of the very worst hydro methods, for plant health and yield.  Is it curiosity? (I can certainly respect that)  Or do you know something that I don't?
 
Again, I'm here on a sand dune, lusting for your soil, and you're trading great grows for 3rd world permaculture methods.  LOL
View attachment 65782
 
I really don't need 50 pepper plants, as I am the only one who eats them in my family.  So if I want 6 plants that I don't want to take care of, and have them grow huge and produce hundreds of pods, then I have all the pods that I need.  See attached picture.
 
In my mind, there is no wrong answer.  It is just personal preference and looking for more time in the day to do the things we enjoy.
 
2016-07-23 10.52.25.jpg
 
Pods.jpg

SpeakPolish said:
Typically Kratky encourages root growth but thats basically it. Its probably good enough to start your seeds to get a head start on growth
I have not encountered that.  Here are two Scotch Bonnet plants where branches collapsed under the weight of the pods.  I had 250-300 pods on each plant.
 
deep_roots said:
attachicon.gif
Pods.jpg
I have not encountered that.  Here are two Scotch Bonnet plants where branches collapsed under the weight of the pods.  I had 250-300 pods on each plant.
 
There is a lot of dubious information about peppers in hydroponics and I suspect that a lot of it comes from people trying to grow them like that one other skunky plant that people like so much. I had a kratky ghost pepper at my desk at work that produced hot plentiful pods until it got a bad spider mite infestation. Absolutely no issues with growing whatsoever. 
 
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