I was to busy to harden them off properly so they went outside very early.

Recycled and painted salad dressing containers. I work at a restaurant so they are easy for me to get.

Gotta love the Kratky method.

Tomatoes

Excellent root growth

Go baby go

My buddy

Tomatoes and cucumbers

Basil is doing awesome

Toms

Cucumbers. They are already beginning to set fruit! Since the cucs and toms are doing well I'm going to order an air pump to give them a bit more oxygen. I'm posting this to let people know how easy and inexpensively this can be done. The coolers are also recycled from seafood shippments. They seem to do a great job of keeping the roots cool resulting in a lot less wilting than the dressing containers. They do let a little to much light in butI'm working on a solution for that too.

Happy roots!

Congratulations I am very proud of your efforts.

Nice. I've got a few Kratky coffee cans going with lettuce. What fertilizer rates did you use?

I have attached a PH and EC chart with suggested nutrient rates , Lettuce only require a low nutrient level eg ..8 to 1.2 EC and a PH at about 6 to 7.

Ps I have started some in an old container using the Kratky method, plus some Japanese vegetables Komatsuna in a 12 pot set up which I bought on ebay which grow quickly and great for stir fry or soups.I have grown Kratky and also with an air stone and both give similar results. For Tomato etc which really are very thirsty and need top ups I think the air stone assists in growth.

Thanks but like rwheeler007 I don't have an EC meter so was looking for the specific products/amounts he used when mixing up his nutrient solution.

@Robert1943 - Thanks for the chart. I've been looking for something easy like that for ph of different plants.

@Boreal wormer - I used 1 tablespoon per gallon of Maxigrow for basil and lettuce. I use 2 with the cucs and toms, half grow, half bloom. Also I'm on well water that has a ton (600+ppm) of calcium in it.

I'm starting to get some spotting on my lower leaves of the cucs. Like maybe it's stripping the lower leafs for nutes. Should I up the nutes or maybe switch over to only bloom nutes? Good luck with your gardens guys feel free to post a pic of your stuff.

@ rwheeler007 thanks for the info. Nice job re-purposing the various containers too.

I am happy that youâÂÂve gone absolutely right so far. But since you are a first-timer, I would like to tell you the basics of hydroponic growing and how to maintain your hydroponic vegetable garden.

Things you should always keep in mind are:
1. Different vegetable types require specific nutrients and pH levels.
2. You should use a TDS meter to check the water amount and quality
3. Prefer a digital probe for measuring the pH and strength of the nutrient solution.
4. Take test equipment readings only when youâÂÂve run the nutrient at least twice through your system.

I used to always recommend people grow tomatoes when they first try hydro but after the bumper crop of basil we had last year, that might be the best plant to try on a first run.

Hey grizzman me too it is so green and large , I picked a small piece that had self seeded in my soil garden and put it in my ebb a flow , and it just took off.

I'm impressed! Beautiful healthy plants with great roots. What are "bloom dry nutes" and what are the brown square things the seeds are planted in? Are they coir squares? Have you had better success with them vs other materials?
Thanks.