Everything you have to know
on starting a tray cycle.
You start your first crop and do not know how to proceed with the culture capsules, seeds and settings of the device? Here is everything you need to know before transferring your plants to the wheel.Â
1) Planting seeds in the culture cups
The culture cups are a mixture of potting soil and certified organic compact fertilizer, in a biodegradable fabric membrane. They are received in packs of 90 (they come back to 0.89 $ per cups) and they are non-hydrated.
Choose your seeds. Depending on these, you will have different recommendations on the number of seeds to put in each capsule, but usually it is 1 to 3.
2) Preparing the cups and seeds
Take 30 dry capsules and insert in the small hole in the middle, the seed or seeds. No need to cover: when the capsules are well inflated, you can however gently depress the largest seeds (beans, nasturtiums, etc.)
Arrange your 30 seeded cups on the top tray in the germinating cabinet, putting them as close as possible to the middle of the tray.
Make sure that the tray on the lower tray is filled with water and that the pumps and water level sensors are submerged inside. Â
3) Starting the tray programÂ
To start the tray program, Press the left button in the main menu. Select tray, start and yes. The light will come on and the first watering will be done. The first two watering are of 90 seconds duration and are 12 hours apart: then the frequency stabilizes to that chosen.
 Watering program:
Day 0 : 90 secs of watering
Day 0 + 12h : 90 secs of watering
Day 7 : 60 secsÂ
Day 13: 60 secs
Day 18 : 60 secs
Day 22: 60 secs
en then every 3 days : 60 secs
And There you go ! You will be able to watch little by little the evolution of your plants.
21 days later, the computer will tell you that it may be time to transfer the plants to the wheel: not all plants grow at the same speed and that if you consider that the plants can remain longer, there is no problem. You can also decide to transfer them anyway into the wheel without any problem. We recommend to transfer the plant when they are 5 to 6 inches tall. or when the plants touch the inside led lamp.
If there are still plants not large enough on your tray, you can switch to manual tray watering mode to increase the watering interval. To do this, on the main menu (right button) Watering / Plateau / Choice / increase the interval to 4 to 6 days depending on the number of plants remaining. If you have less than 10 plants remaining, transfer the plants even if they have small sprouts in the wheel or you can take out the few remaining plants, start 30 new capsules and put the capsules released on day 1 on the tray with the others.
To note
Note that the capsules have what it takes for around 30 to 60 days depending on the type of plant and the nutrients it consumes. There comes a time when it may be necessary to add a fertilizer.
Also some plants such as basil or mint, require maintenance to prevent it from going to seed.
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image from customer
4) Arrange your plants in the wheel
It has become a real little jungle in your germination cabinet: the little computer tells you that it may be time to transfer them into the wheel. However, you have a few questions before you start. Here are some information that will be greatly helpful.
How to arrange the plants in the wheel?
What we recommend, to start with your 30 new plants, is to distribute them in the wheel so that it is well balanced: so not all on the same side.
How should I spread the plants?
It may be interesting to divide them by species: some baskets with lettuce, others with herbs and small plants such cherry tomatoes, sweet peppers together too. You can also put basil with lettuce. The idea, when you have a full wheel, will be to distribute them so that plants that are tall and bushy do not prevent others from receiving the light necessary for their evolution. For example, lettuce baskets should not be side by side with a basket that contains small plants: they need all the light they can benefit from. Make sure each plant has enough light.
Do you have any suggestions or questions that are not found in this article? Please let us know by joining the OGarden community on Facebook. Other customers share tips and experiences made with the OGarden.
Image from customer
5) Starting the wheel program + Optimum watering frequency for the wheel
You have transferred your plants into the wheel: it’s nice is not it ?! What a joy to combine nature and technology!
Something is missing: the light!
Start the wheel program (Left button – wheel – start – yes)
and the light will turn on! Watering will be done automatically.
For a wheel half full, go to Settings – Watering – Wheel – Choice – 2 ½ days. Suggestive title: make sure your cups when you touch them that they are moist but not soaked or dry. It is also possible, depending on the seeds, that only a few plants are ready for transfer. It will then be necessary to use a larger interval for watering the wheel. (Ex: 4-5 days for 4-6 plants in the wheel.)
If necessary, you can increase the frequency every 2 days if you find that some plants lack water.
** When you have a full wheel, put the watering every 1 ½ days. You can increase the frequency to twice a day ** ** Suggestive title, it is up to you to ensure that your plants receive water properly.
Plants where the base is wet do not need watering. A saying says: ” It is better for a plant to lack water than it has too much! ”
And There you go ! The plants will reach maturity each at their own speed.
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Image from customer
6) Tips for plant maintenance
Fertilizer
The fertilizer in the culture capsules can be affected by a variety of factors, including heavy watering (which can leach capsule nutrients), intense drought and lack of aeration. It can be very interesting to buy a biological liquid fertilizer to add, according to the dosage, in the water of the tank, which reduces the stress that the plant undergoes in connection with the points previously stated. Using a weekly liquid fertilizer can also ensure faster and more abundant growth.
Care of lettuce
It is not necessary to harvest the entire plant at the same time: cutting with a good knife at the base of the leaves on the periphery will stimulate the growth of new leaves in the heart of the plant. However, it can be harvested in its entirety: cut the lettuce at the collar to leave the pale part, and new leaves will appear soon.
Basil Care
Basil is a wonderful plant that grows very fast and long: the fact of “cutting the head” regularly will stimulate the growth of its leaves on the periphery rather than height.
Maintenance of other herbs
You have to know that harvesting a few small leaves sometimes during production stimulates the growth of the plant, but it is also optional: you can simply contemplate them grow.
Maintenance of small plants
None, except to choose and keep one plant (the stronger of the two) after 21 days of germination.
Image from customer
Maintenance and checking the systems
Clean the sensorÂ
It is very important for the working of the systems and pumps to clean the sensors. There are 4 sensors but only 1 need special attention. The sensor at the bottom of the wheel need to stay clean. Dirt of leaves can make the sensor a false reading ending with the pump to not carrying water to plants in the wheel anymore. You can have a visual look but the better way it to check the system menu and clean the sensor and the basin at the bottom of the wheel.
Checking the system menu
In the main menu, press the right button. Scroll to System. and select the Demo Mode.
L = Lights (press twice for both lights)
TP = Tray Pump ( press to Activate/deactivate the pump)
WP = Wheel pump ( press to Activate/deactivate the pump)
Sensors
Tray = Sensors on the tray
Wheel = Sensors on the basin under the wheel.
Leak = Sensor inside the OGarden motor tray
Level = Reservoir water level
If trouble to the wheel sensors, test it by pressing WP. If the pump start it’s fine, check if water properly come in the basin. Other else it will indicate (!) mean it need to be clean.
To exit the demo mode, Hold button L for 2 secs.