During the Covid lockdown, I started a hydrophonics experiment planting saluyot (jute in English, molochia or Egyptian Spinach) and basil using an improvised water culture system. This may sound too technical, but it’s just a plastic storage container filled with water, an aerator and a pair of grow lights.
I am just so excited to share how this experiment turned out. I was not sure how it was going to be. At the start, the saluyot seedlings seemed so fragile but I just let them be. Later on, both basil and saluyot started gaining momentum. Now they are like medium shrubs of greenery that I have to trim or they just grow wild.
So far, I have prepared eight or ten meals out of this system and being indoors, it seems that this may last even through the winter. I only harvest what I need every time I get the urge to eat Ilocano inabraw or whenever I make my favorite pasta dish, carbonara.
Saluyot is a favorite Ilocano vegetable. I also love cooking pasta so I included basil in the mix. Having this accessible indoor garden setup makes me feel closer to home (Philippines) and still going Italian!
Interested in making your own hydrophonics system? Here’s how I built my Saluyot and Basil Hydrophonics Experiment:
Materials
Plastic Container Bin (use black for outdoors to keep molds from growing)
Aerator
Grow light
Liquid organic fertilizer for hydrophonics systems
Plant containers
Plants
Directions
- Cut holes on the lid cover of the plastic storage box
- Fill the container with water
- Run the aerator in the container
- Add recommended fertilizer amount into the water
- Place plants in the plant containers and place them through the lid holes.
- Adjust water lever making sure that the base of the planters are submerged about a fourth of an inch. Keep this level at all times by adding more water during the week.
- Turn on the grow light and let it run depending on the light requirements of your plant.
Enjoy!
Btw, the background music is also mine. It’s entitled “Remembering Home”.