Before ordering an AeroGarden we started saving seeds from tomatoes (cherry and grape) and bell peppers. Some particularly delicious miniature bell peppers yielded a good crop of seeds, so they are the first seeds to be sown in the new AeroGarden PRO200.

Red, orange, and yellow baby bell pepper seeds were sown midday immediately after unpacking the AeroGarden. Seeds sprouted on the 5th day – earlier than anticipated. Scroll down for the latest photos.

click photos to enlarge

DAY 1:

Not much to see here yet…

DAY 5:

DAY 6:

DAY 28:

Baby bell peppers at 28 days. A garlic plant grows in a pot to the left, and thunbergia seedlings (black-eyed susan vine) are in plugs to the right. A minimum-maximum hygrometer/thermometer monitors the humidity and temperature.

DAY 31:

31 Days into the growth cycle – flower buds are forming

Buds on AeroGarden pepper plants

(click on images to enlarge)

DAY 40:

The first flowers began to open around 40 days after planting.

DAY 48:

The first mini baby bell pepper!

See also…

• AeroGardens and accessories at new low prices
• Liquid hydroponic nutrients

The AeroGarden Pro200 is sleek and attractive, runs quietly, and took about 10 minutes to unbox and set up.

AeroGrow (the company that makes the AeroGarden line of products) recently dropped the prices on all the AeroGarden models, and with free shipping this purchase was a great deal. Plus, the unit arrived with two freebies that we weren’t expecting:

• The AeroGarden Herb ‘n Serve – a very cool, battery-operated salad dressing and marinade maker. Works like a small blender, just add fresh herbs, oil and vinegar, blend and serve. Comes with a booklet full of recipes for dressings made with your freshly grown AeroGarden crops
• Herb it up! – a 2-inch thick binder full of recipes, tips and techniques for using your AeroGarden herbs, organized by cuisine (Tuscan Italian, Mediterranean, South of the Border etc.) and by food type (Poultry, Seafood, Beef & Pork, Pasta & Rice etc.)

Neither of these items was advertised as bonus gifts when we placed the order, so it was a really nice surprise to find them when the box was opened.

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Everything that came in the box: AeroGarden PRO200 unit, Herb ‘n Serve, Recipe book, and Aerogarden catalog

Herb ‘n Serve Salad Dressing & Marinade Maker

Herb it Up! Fresh Herb Cooking for Everyone recipe book

Opening the AeroGarden Pro200 box, we find everything well organized and tightly packed for shipping:

• The AeroGarden unit: base, bowl, lamp arm, hood
• three grow light bulbs
• the Master Gardener Kit (to sow your own seeds)
• a Gourmet Herb kit (pre-seeded pods)
• a quick-start guide to setting up the unit

Once everything was out of the box, set up was very quick: Insert the bulbs, assemble the unit, fill it with water, add seeds to the pods and label them, choose the grow setting, drop in the nutrients, and done. The only thing left to do is to set the timer for the lamp at the time you want the lights to go off.

A note about labeling the pods: The set-up guide says to use a dry iron to affix labels to the grow pods. Instead, we used used a little bit of white glue on the rims of the plastic pod baskets. The glue is standing up to plant growth and humidity just fine.

Grow lights inserted into the hood	Unit assembled
Master Gardener kit	Pods inserted
Lights on, and we’re all set to go	Companion plants for the AeroGarden

Other plants will love sitting next to your AeroGarden unit. African violets, in particular, make great companion plants for your AeroGarden.

Read about the seeds planted for the first AeroGarden project, and watch them grow…

click to read about the baby bell peppers…

You may be interested in:

• AeroGardens and accessories
• pH Kits and Hydroponic Nutrients

We just love these glass rooting vases! While growing up, my mother always had glass rooters hanging in the kitchen window next to her African violet shelves. They are particularly attractive when hung two or three together with differing cord lengths.

Colored glass rooting jars help start cuttings quickly. The shaded glass shields the roots from direct sun and keeps algae to a minimum. Start ivy, pothos, begonias, coleus, philodendron, herb cuttings, and even African violet leaves in these pretty little vases.

Rooting jars and vases come and go in popularity and are sometimes hard to find. Grab them while you can – they make great gifts for indoor plant enthusiasts.

Hand-blown Glass Rooting Vases

AeroGarden Classic in Black

At first, I had indoor garden envy. As an indoor grower of herbs and flowering house plants I had to admire the beauty of the thing. After all, most of my grow systems are ‘jerry-rigged’ out of net pots, inexpensive plastic pieces and miscellaneous odds and ends soldered together – efficient and productive, but not very attractive. That’s what you get when experimenting (in soil, soilless, hydroponic, semi-hydro, aeroponic, passive hydro etc.) on a budget.

After observing my mom’s first growing season with the AeroGarden I was already thinking of ways I would reverse engineer the unit (if I had one) to grow the plants that *I* would want to grow, without having to buy the seed kits from AeroGrow. For this primary reason I wasn’t in any hurry to purchase a unit.

Fast forward to December 2009: I decided to get some replacement bulbs and seed kits as stocking stuffers for Mom. I discovered the Master Gardener Kit that allows you to plant whatever seeds you want in your AeroGarden Classic (so, Mom is getting that for Christmas, too). And I discovered all the different models that have come out since the original AeroGarden, from cute and colorful (see below) to space-saving units and the Pro Series. They even have a trellis system for tying tall plants like tomatoes and peppers.

Finally, after three years, I made the commitment – I ordered an AeroGarden Pro200:

To sweeten the deal, I got 20% off and free shipping. Check out unboxing the AeroGarden Pro200.

If you’re interested in a smaller unit, the AeroGarden 3 comes in lots of colors and patterns:

=> See all the AeroGardens available now

Basil is a very aromatic, bushy annual that grows very well as a house plant. Basil is a staple in the indoor herb garden, and probably one of the best herbs for hydroponic sytems. Basil stems can be rooted in water and will often grow there happily without ever being transplanted into soil or soilless mix.

Types of Basil Plants

Basil varieties range from dwarf varieties that grow only 6 to 8 inches in diameter to larger bushes reaching 2 ft. or more in height. Flavors vary depending upon the strength and character of the oil in the leaves.

Here are some popular varieties of basil growing in our indoor herb garden:

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Plant tray, back row: Genovese (Sweet Italian) Basil, Lemon Basil, Basil Fino Verde

Front row: Basil Aroma, Greek Basil, Lime Basil, Basil ‘Spicy Globe’
In the background: Sweet mini baby bell peppers growing in an Aerogarden, and a tray of thunbergia plantlets.

• Sweet basil (also called Basil Genovese, or sweet Italian basil) – this is the most popular, “common” variety of basil for Italian recipes, pesto sauce, etc. Indispensable to the kitchen garden
• Lemon basil – a small-leaved variety, small plant variety, with a strong lemon scent and flavor. Excellent for adding flavor to salads, salad dressings, and teas
• Greek basil – a very compact and bushy plant with tiny leaves. Fragrance is that of anise and clove, and an excellent addition to tomato-based dishes
• Lime basil – a compact grower with small light green leaves scented like citrus lime and sweet basil
• Aromatto basil (Basil ‘Aroma’) – has large, flat purple leaves and aromatic, spicy scented leaves. Grows tall (up to 18 in.)
• Basil ‘Spicy Globe’ – A compact hybrid that grows in a small, perfect globe. Excellent for containers and (we hope) indoor plant stands

Purple basil and cinnamon basil are also very popular varieties of basil for the kitchen herb garden.

How to Grow Basil Indoors

Basil seeds can be sown in pre-moistened peat plugs or Jiffy® pellets, or any moistened, well-drained seed-starting mix. Sow the seeds at room temperature (70-75F) about 1/8″ deep and one to two inches apart and place under lights or in a bright windowsill.chive seeds in a bright window or under lights. If you have a dry environment you will have the best results using a covered seed propagator, and if your environment is cool or the indoor temperature drops significantly at night a heat mat will help germinate your basil seeds.

Basil seedlings in starter plugs

» NOTE: To hasten germination use a heat mat and propagation dome.

Basil seeds germinate and grow exceptionally quickly when planted in an AeroGarden herb-growing system. If you use the Master Gardeners’ Kit you can sow and grow healthy basil plants of any variety all year round.

Harvesting Basil

You can start using leaves from your basil plant after the second set of “true” leaves emerges. (The first set of green leaves are the cotyledons, or embryonic leaves.) Once the second set of leaves emerge and are large enough for your use, pinch off those leaves above the node, which will cause the plant to branch out. Soon you will have a full, bushy plant and lots of lots of fresh basil.

Herb scissors are useful when harvesting basil leaves.

Drying Basil / Freezing Basil

The best tasting basil is fresh basil. Dried basil and frozen basil just can’t compare to fresh basil leaves. But if you have a large harvest and want to preserve basil, freezing is recommended over drying since much of the flavor is lost in the drying process.

If you decide to dry your basil, pick the leaves just before the plant flowers. To freeze basil, coat each side of each leave with olive oil and layer the leaves flat between sheets of wax paper and freeze in a plastic freezer container. You can also store whole basil leaves in olive oil and use as needed.

You may be interested in…

• Basil Seeds
• Seed Starting Supplies
• Herb scissors – very useful if you do a lot of cooking
• Herb grinders – useful if you dry herbs for later use

Recommended reading:

The Complete Book of Herbs: A Practical Guide to Growing and Using Herbs

Little Herb Gardens