Sat, 2008/12/27 - 9:49pm
I'd been wondering when we might see more Aerogarden competitors... Check out this page at Burpee, the "Power Plant" series of items, including the "Power Grow Lamp" with bulb. A more modular approach than Aerogrow's all-in-one. The $80 "Power Plant Pro" base seems to be a 6-basket system, though it looks quite small... (You have to click into the product page, then click on "More views" to see slightly more detail.)
Anybody seen any other Aerogarden competitors out there? Meaning... 
Well, light + nutrient speed-assist in a decorator friendly packaging, I guess...
Sun, 2008/12/28 - 1:41am
#2
Hmm, interesting, could be some serious competition.. Looks to cost about the same as an AG once you add the light, tho. Not a bad concept and obviously a lot of thought went into it. Looks like it uses a standard CFL and slowly rotates under it, not as thorough as AG but the lamp is probably cheaper. Wonder if it uses air or a water pump? The pods look as long as the AG6s but the sponges look like the ones from an AG7
Ah, aeroponics according to the burpee site. Cute.
Sun, 2008/12/28 - 12:56pm
#3
I looked for the product on Amazon - the only comment suggested a noise issue with the 6-podder. Which makes sense, with it rotating around. It also didn't seem to have any variety in nutrients - just the one liquid concentrate formulation. Didn't really see anything that led me to think it was better than an AG, just another entry in that market niche of similar price.
Modularizing to sell the lights and bowl separately seemed nice, though. One of the reasons I still don't have external-to-AG grow lights (except the $10 Walmart toy), is that an attractive and furnishing-friendly growlight installation is kind of a problem... I'm getting kinda tempted by an $80 seedling table light at ParkSeed.com (website presently not responding, or I'd post a link).
Sun, 2008/12/28 - 6:19pm
#4
Yes, it looks like a basic form of aeroponics. The table is rotated and jets spray the sponges (as opposed to the AG dripper system), this should produce some fast growing plants - you can't beat aeroponics for growth, nice idea.
I think I would rather stay with the AG though, it's more customizable and can grow the larger plants. If you only want to grow herbs and lettuce then it's a neat little unit.
I'm looking into doing something with aeroponics with my Classic, a small water pump, tubing and some micro misters. It's only an idea at this stage but I cannot stay still and want to try different things with my AG... I don't want to disturb my tomatoes and cucumber at this moment in time so it won't be a quick job.
Sun, 2008/12/28 - 6:20pm
#5
Ooh, I look forward to this one, Peat!
Sun, 2009/02/01 - 5:00pm
#6
Another competitor (although it's just a concept), the Broto Aeroponic Pot - this looks really cool. 
Sun, 2009/02/01 - 7:45pm
#7
It does look cool! Rummaged around - her concept includes continual monitoring of pH and nutrients, etc., too, and uses LED's. I kinda question the shape / lighting, though. Being able to raise/lower the lights really matters, and I really doubt those LED's provide sufficient light.
Mon, 2009/02/02 - 3:33am
#8
Wow, what a beautiful design! I can think of a half dozen reasons why it's impractical, though.. And unless LEDs have changed a lot in the last six months, those are way too few and way to high to be of much use.
Fri, 2009/02/06 - 9:59pm
#9
Futuregarden has the Aerospring aeroponic gardening system. I appreciate the way it comes with light stand, and you can mix and match the components. Like if you (like me) have reservations about what exactly a 400W HPS light might do to the furniture and room liveability, and thus wish to explore lighting alternatives. Though I like the light rack. Aerospring features aeration (airstone+pump) for its 15 gallon tank, as well as aeroponic sprayers. Definitely a floor model.
Sat, 2009/02/07 - 2:24am
#10
Wow, I really like that futuregarden setup, will spend some time reading up on it all, just the aerospring alone would do well in a south facing window that's getting over-run with those "junk" tomato plants from last season, they're growing and producing like crazy just using the whiskey bottle trick.
Sat, 2009/02/07 - 12:24pm
#11
Yeah! I think the Aerospring (or the two-hooked-together thing) would do well for tomatoes in a window! With 15 gallons per, you could probably manage 3 tomato plants apiece in them.
Do you have any feel yet for how the Autopots stack up against hydroponic / aeroponic growing? Not as advanced, no, but the no-power-usage aspect sure is a nice feature, especially in a window.
Sat, 2009/02/07 - 4:31pm
#12
I'm very impressed with the Autopots, they're no trouble and like you say, no power and few parts make them even better. The 14 gallon tank lets us leave home for 2 weeks if we want and I've seen no nute swing, once I get it right the EC and PH stay constant. It's even nicer since they can be used outdoors and require lots less care than our Earthboxes.
I know they grow a lot faster than planting in soil outdoors and would make a wild guess they're 75-85% as fast as an AG. The package says to start indoors 8-10 weeks before planting outside. It's 10 weeks and I'm starting to harvest.
It's hard to tell since this is my first crop and I never tried real green chiles in an AG. My ex-SO bought a Deluxe and simply used it with AG tabs per directions. She had nice Big Jim chile plants but said they turned out japaleno size instead of 6-8". She's still happy, she's a master gardner and it turns out an old friend of ours is now the Burpee seed rep for NM so she's got lots of things to try.
I'm going to harvest my first Anaheim green chile today and rearrange things a bit. The circulation fan broke and took out a quarter of the smallest plant as it fell, duct tape to the rescue! I'll throw together another slide show tonight for them so you can see how they've grown.
Sat, 2009/02/07 - 5:44pm
#13
Really! Wow! Hm. You think the Autopots grow plants a lot faster than an Earthbox, too? That would be impressive... I've been happy with the Growboxes (Earthbox competitor, slightly different design, cheaper), and hadn't even considered going hydroponic outdoors... Hm. 
A Burpee seed rep is a nice kinda friend to have! 
10 weeks and starting to harvest full-size peppers is a lot better than I did with a pro100/Deluxe!
Looking forward to the pix, and hearing how the crucial taste test goes!
P.S. Rummaged around and found a better site explaining the Prepara "Power Plant Pro".