One cool thing about the crystals is that because they're clear, you can actually see what's going on below the surface (well, sort of -- it's like looking through water that has a lot of ripples on the surface). I can see several of the seeds have roots. The seeds that don't appear to have roots may actually have them, they may just be growing straight down so I can't see them.

I may have made a mistake starting with the "California Crystals" brand instead of waiting for the SoilMoist to come in. They are much larger when expanded than the smaller crystals like SoilMoist. Hopefully it won't be too much of a problem, and when I transplant them it will be into the SoilMoist granulated crystals.

Because they are so clear, I have been concerned about light getting to the roots. I think I may have found a solution: black food coloring. The crystals will take on whatever color the water is. I'm not sure yet how much the food coloring will affect PPM, but assuming it doesn't increase PPM too much, that definitely seems the way to go.

More updates to come...