Tower Garden Presents Non-Growers Guide for First-Time Gardeners

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Jun 02, 2020, 08:37 ET

COLLIERVILLE, Tenn., June 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Gardening has become a newfound hobby for many during this extended period of self isolation, as well as a way for those to control their own food supply. This has caused nurseries to sell out of vegetables, seed sales to double, and tomato plants to sell at the rate of around 800 a day. For the many just beginning their gardening journey, Tower Garden has developed a step-by-step guide to ensure abundant, successful harvests are had by all.

Additionally, food is estimated to travel up to 1,500 miles in the U.S . before reaching the dinner table, but with an at-home garden, growers can get fresh produce quickly and straight from their own gardening system. This six-step guide focuses on easing frustrations of gardening like climate concerns, sunlight, overwatering, pests and reduce overall stress for the first-time non grower.

Choose the Right Garden: Aeroponic gardening is a time-sensitive, cost-effective introduction to indoor or outdoor growing. Aeroponic means plants grow without soil, instead using water and nutrients to grow. Tower Garden offers two aeroponic products for growing either indoors or outdoors.
Set up Properly: Wherever the garden is placed, it will need to be connected to a power source to ensure the automated watering system and LED lights (if using them) operate properly. Setting up an aeroponic garden at home requires less time to install than traditional gardening practices, usually taking only 20-25 minutes.
Plant the Seeds: If starting with seeds, growers will have the most control over their seedlings' quality; however, it does take more time to grow. If growers don't want to start their own seeds, they can also buy seedlings and simply transplant them to their tower.

First, decide when the best time is to grow the plants, and then soak the seeds overnight in a shallow bowl of water to speed the germination. There are only seven necessary steps needed in order to grow strong, healthy seedlings.
Before the seeds sprout, temperature is a critical factor. Most leafy greens and herbs will germinate well in the 55–75˚F range.

Transplant the Seeds: When seeds are about three inches tall, it's time to transplant. A week before transplanting, growers need to harden off their seedlings. This is a very simple process - just expose the seedlings to the outdoors in increments of a few hours every day for a week.
Maintain Your Garden: Maintenance is easy as the vertical tower automatically delivers water and nutrients when they're most needed, allowing growers to grow strong, healthy plants with minimal effort. Gardeners will need to regularly check on their plants 1-2 times a week to ensure pH levels are adequate, water temperature is between 65-85 degrees, and the reservoir is full.
Harvest: Many vegetables can be harvest-ready in as little as three weeks after transplanting. Once picked, produce needs to be consumed quickly to ensure optimal nutrition. A few examples of harvests below:

For tomatoes, the time it takes to produce fruit depends on an array of factors, such as the plant variety, weather, pollination, and more. The first clue will be the color (it will be a deep red), and the second clue is hardness. The riper a tomato gets, the softer it will become.
For basil, the herb responds to frequent (as often as twice per week) picking. Once basil has developed six to eight pairs of leaves, pinch or cut stem tips just above where the plant is branching.

For more information about Tower Garden or about first-time growing, visit our beginners guide to aeroponic gardening blog post.

About Tower Garden:
Harnessing state-of-the-art growing technology known as aeroponics, Tower Garden offers individuals and families a cleaner, more efficient way to grow fresh, healthy produce indoors or outdoors. The system uses water, liquid nutrients and a soilless growing medium to quickly and efficiently grow more colorful, tastier, better smelling and nutritious fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers. Research shows that produce can be grown twice as fast, at up to a 30 percent higher yield than traditional methods, all while using up to 98 percent less water. Based in Collierville, Tenn., Tower Garden is part of the Juice Plus+ Company. For more information, visit towergarden.com or at @towergarden on Instagram and Twitter.

SOURCE Tower Garden