| LED Gardener |
| In This Issue Fresh Herbs Year Round Aqua-Bar Aquarium Lighting Basics Featured Distributors Light Earth Design Pty, LTD Ocean Shores, NSW Australia www.lightearthdesign.com Henckel Gruppen ApS Roedby Denmark +45 7022 7333 www.henckel.biz Featured Product Woody's Grow Stand Receive 10% off of your purchase of Woody's Grow Furniture by pre-ordering in the month of June. Get on the list here or call Toll Free for wholesale LED light stands. 1-866-414-7244 Care to Comment? The LED Gardener appreciates all the input we receive from our readers. If you would like to submit an article or pictures; or if you would like to comment on a current article please send submissions and comments or questions to: admin@led-grow-master.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed at led-grow-master.com If you do not wish to receive this newsletter :Request your name removed by emailing angela@led-grow-master.com |
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| June, 2010 Volume 5, Issue 6 |
There is an immense sense of satisfaction that comes from preparing and serving food that I grew myself. On top of this pride in my green thumb is a comforting feeling of knowing where the food I’m serving came from; I know it is fresh, with more nutrients and better flavor than those found at the average grocery. I know that growing my own is a frugal method of providing food, while eliminating the waste in transporting and storing it. Add to this the expressions of awe when your guests can see and smell their ingredients growing, and you have great reasons to grow your own food. One of the simplest ways to realize this feeling, if you have not already done so, is to grow your own herbs right in the kitchen. Growing fresh herbs can transform even the plainest kitchen into a place of beauty and many common herbs are conveniently simple to grow and require very little space. Due to the wide variety of leave shapes, color, and flavor; basil is enough to compliment a wide variety of meals and makes a beautiful kitchen herb garden alone or with the common pairing of Sage or Thyme. Popular varieties that will make for a stunning counter top or windowsill are Sweet Basil, Purple ruffles Basil, and Lemon Basil. Sweet Basil is the most frequently called for in cooking, Purple Basil adds color, and Lemon Basil contributes an intense lemony fragrance. Your local nursery will likely carry all three varieties in the form of seeds and starters. If you are starting from seed, select 3”-4” pots and fill with a pre-moistened, quality medium that is light, and quick draining. Foxfarm makes an organic mix called “Light Warrior” that I like. Your Basil wants to be moist but it should never be soggy. Basil is very sensitive to water stress. Press down on the soil lightly to eliminate the air pockets. Drop two to three seeds into each container, and cover lightly with about ¼ inch of pre- moistened sphagnum moss. Spray the tops gently to settle the seeds. Many people cover the pots with plastic wrap after the initial moistening until the seeds have germinated, which is generally within 5-12 days (Sweet Basil will grow faster than both the Purple and Lemon Basil). Once you see the sprouts- place them in a south or west facing window. If there isn’t a good window available, 9 watts of LEDs is enough to cover about a 15” x 45”area on a counter or shelf; just enough for a kitchen herb garden. The fresh sprouts should not be allowed to dry out. Baby window basil may need watered twice a day initially, while LED gardens will likely need watered every three to four days. Be careful not to over water. A small oscillating fan gently blowing for a couple of hours a day will help simulate the outdoors and make your seedlings shorter and sturdier. After about 4-6 weeks your basil should be ready to transplant into individual 8”-10” pots or one big pot leaving 6-12” between plants. I like terra cotta pots because the porosity creates better drainage and air circulation than plastic. Don’t be afraid to get creative with your kitchen containers as long as you can provide good drainage. Basil has shallow roots so a shallow pot will allow the roots to reach out and also keeps the root zone warmer which basil likes. Soil should be kept at a PH of at least 6.0 and below 7.5. After transplanting, pinch back regularly to keep one to two sets of leaves on each branch. Pinch back where the leaf meets the stem right above the baby set of leaves when they appear. Pinching back often will encourage new growth and bushier plants. Basil is an Annual so you may want to let one or two branches go to seed for next years garden but keep in mind that as soon as you let the Basil go to flower, leaf production will slow down and it will change the flavor of the leaves on the flowering branch.. Apply fertilizers sparingly. Fertilizers can make the basil grow too fast and compromise the flavor and aroma of the plant. Once the initial transplant is done, your kitchen garden should take up only 5-10 minutes of your time a week to provide beauty and fresh herbs year round. Aqua-Bar Aquarium Lighting Basics
world. Over 18 months of development by independent researchers at leading universities and private facilities produced the LED arrays tailored specifically to provide light that plants and photosynthesizing organisms use to grow and thrive. By eliminating the wavelengths of light that are not efficiently absorbed by plants, they were able to introduce an aquarium lighting option that runs on a fraction of the electricity and lasts 10-20 times longer than traditional tank lighting, The Aqua-Bar is offered in three models. The ABP3 is meant for freshwater tanks up to 20" deep, the ABP5 is for saltwater tanks up to 20" deep, and the ABP540 is used for both fresh and saltwater tanks that are over 20" in depth. The Aqua-Bar is designed to address the typical tank sizes used in most aquariums today. This means aquariums up to 18" in depth, and 12"-18" front to back. The ABP5 light bar will cover a width of 24" per bar. The one bar per 24" width is a starting point based on plant maintenance. The use of two bars per 24" width will provide ample light energy for nearly all applications of robust plant growth. Set-up is simple. There is no ballast required. When mounting an Aqua-Bar above a tank it must be kept far enough from the surface of the water to prevent water splash from reaching the light bar. Arrays come with screws and suction cups so you can either screw them into a flat wooden surface or use the suction cups to mount them directly to the side/top of the tank. The ideal mounting method would be to use the suction cups to attach the Aqua-Bars to a tight-fitting glass cover above the tank. This reduces the chances of mineral deposits reaching the LEDs and reducing the light output or damaging its internal electronics. The Aqua-Bar is conformal coated at the end of assembly. This sprayed or dipped coating encapsulates the clusters and attached wiring in polyester resin. This should make the clusters water tight, preventing damage if dropped into the tank, or from continuous exposure to damp conditions. While these design features make all of the components water resistant under normal use, marine fish and live rocks are easily damaged by even a little stray electricity. It is not suggested or recommended that they be mounted in direct contact with the water (fresh or salt). The Aqua-Bars require very little maintenance. Cleaning the glass cover and wiping the LEDs with a soft, damp cloth once a month; is all that's needed to maintain optimal performance. It is important to regularly clean the LEDs as long term mineral deposits may be impossible to clean off without damaging the bar. This shouldn't be a problem if bars are mounted to a glass cover but can be a problem if the bar is mounted too close to the surface of the water in an open tank. Be very careful to never clean the Aqua-Bar with any type of acid, including "naturally" acidic solutions such as vinegar. Acid is very corrosive and will damage the Aqua-Bar. Also, be careful not to put too much pressure on the LEDs when you are cleaning them. A small force on the outside of an LED can cause a large force on the internal structures. A light touch is all that is needed. You may find your plants growing much more quickly under the Aqua-Bar, requiring more frequent trimming or water exchanges. You can easily control the growth of your aquatic plants by shortening the amount of time the Aqua-Bar is on each day until you find a lighting schedule that meets your needs. You will notice a "pink" glow under the LEDs. While many clients prefer the unique appearance of an LED tank, a small amount of fluorescent for "view" lighting will return the tank to a more natural appearance. -- SolarOasis
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| LED grow lights grow your own food |
| Indoor Growing and Aquarium Lighting |
| LED Aquarium Lighting |
| Kitchen Sage & Thyme Herb Garden |
