Homehydro posted this, not that I disagree with it:

* Posted by homehydro (My Page) on

Sat, Sep 25, 10 at 6:12

I don't know what the day and night time temps are in your area (zone 8) it stretched all up the west cost when I looked it up, and I don't know what size plants you can accommodate, type of system etc..

But I grew Broccoli last winter myself in west AZ. It was a learning experience. Learning how harvest it best was the the main thing I learned. Also day neutral strawberry's might do well. Personalty I believe you can grow anything hydroponically in any area if you know the needs of the plant and build accordingly. It just depends on your resources (money, materials, time, space etc.).

To me it depends on your goals, do you think you will reap enough reword for your time and money, or is learning the goal? That's how I always look at it when thinking about building a setup. Also can it be used for other plants I may want to grow later (so it's not money wasted).

I have been in many arguments with my mom (last year) about the funds needed to do the job right, even though I gave her a written estimate with an allotment for small unexpected parts (that she conveniently forgot about). Bottom line if building setups with others in mind, be prepared for everything from it cost more than you said, to I could have bought more at the store with that money. If it cost $20 to build a system that would produce 2 to 4 heads of lettuces a week, just be prepared for the argument that they could by a lot of lettuces for $20, so why bother. Today ya, but will it last 6 months, a year two years?

She is only used to growing in dirt. She still does not understand that you can use the system more than once. Nor dos she understand that you can grow all year long if you give the plants the right conditions. All she is used to is planting a plant in the ground and thinking that plant will grow and only cost a few dollars. That's funny because she is still working on a raised flowerbed to grow burssel sprouts (yuck). Between the bricks, stakes, adhesive, potting soil, she has spent about $150, and she still needs about $20 more of soil to fill it (It wont get filled), and she does not even have the plants yet. But she has been doing things her way for 70 years, she's not about to change now.

P.S. I would have not used a raised flowerbed for brussel sprouts in the first place (they need years to mature), I would have used a unused space on the hill in the backyard instead (plenty, plenty, plenty of it). It would have cost less than 25% of that and not tied up valuable prime space in the hart of the backyard (but I'm just stupid that way).

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I live in a colder-climate, Cincinnati, where it can stay below freezing, with little to no sunlight for three weeks in a row or more. So I approach the cost of indoor growing a bit different.

Aside from the fact that trying to find a tomato in January that has a bit more taste than cardboard is a dream, I look at benefits that can be assigned a cost, as well as those that cannot.

For instance, running 1800 watts of HID lights (or CFLs for that matter) for 16 hours per day will add about $103 per month in electricity costs. But running those lights from 5 pm until 9 am will add a bunch of heat overnight, keeping my furnace from kicking on.

Then there are those benefits that cannot be measured with dollars and cents. You probably have heard about SADD - a new malady caused by no or little exposure to sunlight and (IMO) not seeing things growing. But walking into a grow room, looking inside a closet, even seeing a window where anything from lettuce to a banana tree is growing, and seeing new leaves form on a regular basis - what is that worth in the middle of winter!

Thanks to my Greenhouse, the only time I was not extremely cheerful last winter was a period from early January until the middle of February - 40 days at max, and even then there were a couple of bright days. And that was without any artificial lighting!

For the first time in my life, I am not feeling bad about the end of summer or even winter approaching. I look forward to walking down into the basement and seeing the progress of 40 tomato plants, then walking upstairs and seeing my banana plant and dozen basil plants.

Tis true, counting the cost of the lights and building the growing station, I'll break even or maybe make a couple hundred dollars if the plants do great but even if I lose $100 - tell me what activity you can enjoy daily for three months for $1/day!

MIke