Aeroponic/Hydroponic School Project in Rural Alaska

Hello All !!!

Gypsy here, writing from the Far North...

I live in a very small ... place ... in the middle of nowhere ... No, it's not the end of the world, but you CAN SEE IT from here.... lol

Anyway, as you can imagine, our school is very small.
We had 100% graduation rate last school year, 2. Yup! 2 seniors!
There were a total of 18 kids in school and there are 2 teachers (one of them is the principal), a cook and a maintenance guy...

Sooo, what I want to do is grow enough food to feed that school AT SCHOOL!!!

I see a vertical Aero/Hydro in the back wall of each room, with the kids taking care of it... under supervision, of course...

I am starting this thread as a magnet for possible ideas and suggestions...

Low budget and availability of materials are key to the success, we live very far away from the city's "scavanging grounds" or even a grow shop...

I am thinking of using T5 Fluorescent lights to conserve energy...
Remember, our fuel travels thousands of miles in a barge to reach us...
I can go to your city, buy your $4 gas, pour HALF of it on the ground (I would never do that) and walk away smiling at the great savings!!!

I saw diesel get sold for $12 gallon last winter...

Anyway, energy efficient... yes ! a must!

So I was thinking of 6 to 8 inch pvc, stacked "Donkey Kong Style" (you gotta be a little older to get this one...) against the back wall...

This way I could feed the water to the top, and have it flow downwards, through the roots, back to the reservoir...

A shallow angle combined with some sort of "damn" would allow for an airstone (maybe even more than one) to be placed in each tube, bubbling the roots...

The lights would be hung (or stood) vertically in front of the "green wall"...
Moving the lights would give complete access to the wall...

I would prefer using "media-less" foam plugs...

I also think about using pantyhose around the base of each plant, so that the roots would be confined within, making it easy to move plants without having to deal with rootballs...

What do you think of my logic (or lack thereof)???

How much space do I need in order to feed 25 people?
I know we will only be supplementing the school's diet, but what could I expect from a wall that is 15'x8'??? I'll have 3 of those.

What would be good crops to grow in this set-up, with the goal in mind?
I would love to grow the veggies for our moose stews!
Carrots? Potatoes? Beets? Corn? Peas? Beans? Rice?

How about fruits and berries?

I know it can all be done one way or another, I just want to pick your brain...


All of the stuff above is from my brief research into the different methods...
I am brand new at growing food indoors and I THINK I am right, but I KNOW I could be wrong...

Well Thanks for reading!

Gypsy...

I dont know why nobody is replying to this thread, I find it interesting. I do not know much about Hydro or Aero but I think Hydro would be the way to go in this case. (Especially if you have an abundance of pvc =P)

I could draw you up a diagram real quick of how I would position it on the wall but I think you can manage that quite easily =P

The heighth of the plants depending on what you will grow will vary.

But maybe in the end, a regular setup may be what you want IF you really would like to do potatoes, carrots, etc...

Sorry I couldn't be much help (Brain not working correctly). Ill try and research some more for ya =)

Well Thanks Jou!!!
That is very nice of you...
I have some ideas, I just wanted to see what people thought...

Here is something I came up with on my own, although I know there are many similar designs out there...

Ah! And the last tube would gravity feed into the reservoir, not go up as shown... the tank will be the low spot on the system...

Thanks!

Be Well...

Gypsy

"Memory is deceptive because it is colored by today's events." A. Einstein

Oh I noticed you already replied =)

My drawing is pretty much the same as yours is (a little cleaner)

I'm bored as hell at work most the time anyway so I don't mind helping out =)



This would be a good setup for most herbs (Basil, Cilantro, etc...) I would assume. Also im sure tomatoes, Peppers, and there are many more I cant think of atm, that should grow fine in it. OH and strawberries =)

But I dont think carrots would like it, as growing straight down into PVC might hurt em =P

Yes yours is much cleaner... but I bet you didn't draw it on a bar counter after closing.. did ya???? lol

Cool, I am glad someone has liked my idea...

What kind of set up would you think might work for potatoes and carrots???
Can you smell the moose stew???

I guess it would be the same for all bulbous veggies eh?!

Thanks again...

Gypsy...

I dont have much grow experience for anything under my belt, but I do know carrots, onions, potatoes, etc... need room to grow down.

So I think just setting them in a simple pot of either soil or a soil-less mix (for hydro i.e. perlite & vermiculite, etc...) And if you have a shelf for them, instead of having a pvc holding them, the pvc can be over the pot of soil/soil-less mix and drip water into it, not changing much of the design in that aspect...

And the moose stew would be delicious! I only had moose once and thats when I was on a fishing trip at Dillingham. Man they were some delicious pieces of moose! =)

Hey Jou!

How's it hanging?

So you have been to Dillingham... not many people even know where it is...

Kudos +Rep...!!!

I have ridden my snowmachine from Bethel to Dillingham... Beautiful country...

Yes... moose stew... hummmm....!!!

So you don't think carrots and potatoes would like to grow inside of "pantyhose" huh?!?... LOL...!

Serious though, a few holes for the roots to escape and the little bulb just stays in the "net"...

I am so ignorant... it's funny... But I am gonna try it all...

See if it would work...

I also thought of an idea to have corn in a 5 gallon bucket...

Medialess Hydro, with the roots growing into 3 to 4 inch pvc pipe...

The pipe would be heated and shaped into a multilevel coil... with water being pumped from the top and keeping constant "positive pressure", guiding the roots to spiral downwards...

Airstone at the bottom...

The idea is that I might be able to fit several feet of root system into a container otherwise way too small...

What do you think of that????



Eventually, when I get better and can go back home, I am going to build... and grow... and I will post it all here...

So Hope you're in for the long haul... lol

Gypsy...

Il b watching great post

Welcome Camaro!!!

Pull up a chair...

Gypsy...

THANK U SIR

GypsyBush said:

Welcome Camaro!!!

Pull up a chair...

Gypsy...

Click to expand...

Jou said:

So I think just setting them in a simple pot of either soil or a soil-less mix (for hydro i.e. perlite & vermiculite, etc...) And if you have a shelf for them, instead of having a pvc holding them, the pvc can be over the pot of soil/soil-less mix and drip water into it, not changing much of the design in that aspect...

Click to expand...

So I could set the pots high on the PVC pipe, so they are completely out of the flow of water...

and feed them from drippers until the roots reach the water flowing down the pipe...

A deep basket pot, with enough room for each bulb to grow downwards...

I need to do a test with the pantyhose idea...

Either way I have a use for it... if it contains the roots, I can keep rootballs to a minimum.... and if it does not contain the roots, then they are the perfect net for the bulbs, cause the potato is not coming through...

Sorry for rambling...

Gypsy...

Its allgood i just sittig back and learning a few things

gypsybush said:

so i could set the pots high on the pvc pipe, so they are completely out of the flow of water...

And feed them from drippers until the roots reach the water flowing down the pipe...

A deep basket pot, with enough room for each bulb to grow downwards...

I need to do a test with the pantyhose idea...

Either way i have a use for it... If it contains the roots, i can keep rootballs to a minimum.... And if it does not contain the roots, then they are the perfect net for the bulbs, cause the potato is not coming through...

Sorry for rambling...

Gypsy...

Click to expand...

Sweet Thread on the Poppies...

Kudos and +rep... Definitely !!!

Thanks 4 the rep
i rep+ed u 2

gypsybush said:

sweet thread on the poppies...

Kudos and +rep... Definitely !!!

Click to expand...

GypsyBush said:

So I could set the pots high on the PVC pipe, so they are completely out of the flow of water...

and feed them from drippers until the roots reach the water flowing down the pipe...

A deep basket pot, with enough room for each bulb to grow downwards...

I need to do a test with the pantyhose idea...

Either way I have a use for it... if it contains the roots, I can keep rootballs to a minimum.... and if it does not contain the roots, then they are the perfect net for the bulbs, cause the potato is not coming through...

Sorry for rambling...

Gypsy...

Click to expand...

Hehe thank ya man! Yah the flight to Dillingham was amazing, the whole countryside is beautiful =)

But yah, that pot idea sounds like a good plan, should work I guess (Not exactly sure what the pantyhose idea was, although it sounds familiar...

So anyway, whats keeping you from starting this project now? Just knowledge?

Jou said:

So anyway, whats keeping you from starting this project now? Just knowledge?

Click to expand...

Last Winter, I took a fall on the job... and broke my leg... in 7 places... in 7 different directions...

Sooo... 7 months... 3 surgeries... 2 plates... 32 screws... and a psychodelic amount of PAIN later, I am still undergoing physical therapy... everyday... 25 hours a week... until I can fuction again...

I am in the BIG city for a while still, but when I do get back home, it will be on like there is no tomorrow... 7 days a week.... lol

I am posting a picture of one of the x-rays, when my leg still only had a little bit of hardware in it... I'll post the last ones when I find the disk...

Well, catch you guys later...

Gypsy...

for ur carrots, onions and other stuff that requires downward growth id use a drip system and coco medium. havnt used coco so i cant give much advice on it but from what i can tell it would be extremely useful...ne one else think so or am i just thinkin wierd here. i wanna learn about this too, deffiantly a great post...+rep for startin it my man.

Thanks! I appreciate that, although I have only talked about stuff and not actually done anything yet...

I am trying to find materials that are easily found in our remote part of the world...

I do appreciate ALL input, but I also want the kids to be able to build gardens on their own, with minimal cost and recycling as much as they can...

It will be a challenge, with a huge learning curve... but if I teach anyone how to grow their food, I will be happy...

Thanks again, and welcome to the project...

Gypsy...

Nice metal leg man! That had to hurt like hell, and I hope I never have to go through it. My dad has one in his leg from a motorcycle crash back in the day...

I agree actually, that coco medium is a pretty good plan man! Drip system for that row ya know??

This will be a project for all of us to learn more on =) Cant wait til your free man!

Hi...!!!

Yeah... there has been a ridiculous amount of pain...
But I am getting better...

So, I couldn't wait... I had to start experimenting...

Tupperware containers with airstones and PH'd water...

Foam is the "media" and as you can see, there are some roots starting to show and some greenage up top...

Impressive though is the "wick" type cloner/starter made out of a soda pop bottle and some old shoe laces... I have started a couple of clones and a few seeds as well...

It's very effective and it is very cheap to make... or even free out of the garbage...

Well, I'll keep posting the pictures here... stay tuned...

Gypsy...