Last week we had our first round of planting for our aquaponic system at the Hannah and Friends greenhouse. Thanks to Katie Teitgen, H&F's Director of Operations, for serving as photographer for our very first planting session! Everyone rolled up their sleeves and got to work. We planted three crops - basil, red butterleaf lettuce, and green romaine - dividing our Hannah and Friends crew into three stations, each planting a different crop. Each of these veggies will be transplanted into their own grow bed in a few days once they're big enough - so all in all, we'll have 6 different crops going when the system's up and running.
Chris pulled together the photos from that day and turned them into a slideshow, which shows how very hands-on that morning was for everyone! We are starting out by using a growing media called rockwool, which is very absorbent material derived from volcanic matter. It's literally the best sponge we've ever seen, and does a terrific job sucking up and holding water for long periods. It also has a neutral pH, which is a very good thing since we don't want to introduce something into the system that will throw our water chemistry out of whack.
After we planted, Brandon, Matt, Laura, and Chris went outside for a painting party! We painted our grow beds with white latex paint. Matt knew the reason behind this right away: "The white is going to bounce back off the beds. It's going to reflect light instead of light being absorbed." Bingo! That's precisely it. And that's a good thing because it's yet another weapon in our toolkit to prevent algae. Less direct sun on our growing beds at this stage = less algae. Everyone had a great time with their paintbrushes, and we put the newly painted beds back into the system that evening.
Our first planting session was relished by everyone, and all the H&F participants positively jumped right in. Enjoy our nifty little display of our day spent planting and painting, and the pleasure we took in all having a hand in this work!
