Beyond "basic": houseplant style?

[Egzoset]

I still "wish to avoid the use of any hardware other than soil, water and sunlight" as stated in the 1st sentence of my initial post.

I was forced to consider CFLs as an alternative because of insufficient sunlight.

[Egzoset]

This is what i'm experimenting with at the moment:

Attachment 281016

[kingjustin]

That is some very colorful soil ya got there.

[Egzoset]

Indeed. But it's got no nutrients...

Here's why i've adopted such aquarium artifact:

1) It breaks splashes while watering
2) It doesn't allow mold to grow on it
3) It reflects back blue and red light
4) It makes photo sessions pleasant

Here's a somewhat more obvious sample:

Attachment 281020

But really, this one is my favourite so far:

Attachment 281019

Ain't she sexy on a stage like that one?!...

[kingjustin]

Lets be best friends.

[Egzoset]

MouHa! Ha!

I propose we should vape one to that! Attachment 281027

[kingjustin]

Indeed, m'friend.

[Egzoset]

Salutations everyone,

A full year has passed so it's about time for me to post an update... :weedpoke:

...

Here's what happened. Since i found i could hardly provide more than ~10 hours of sunlight during the year's longest summer day i eventually concluded i'd need to build some sort of hybrid cultivation space adapted to "Behind-the-Window" experiments as it would work like a "Docking Station" for plants when it's been cloudy for too long, etc. As a result my strategy was to build a preliminary Prototyping Platform to acquire some hands-on background first.

Here's what this temporarily solution got like:

{...unable to post picture here, see album instead!..}
(2012-Jun-20)

After a while it seemed the tripod telescopic supports had to be moved on the edges, hence that's exactly what happened:

{...unable to post picture here, see album instead!..}
(2012-Oct-24)

It was doing well but then i got a SpiderMite infestation this automn which only got worst despite my efforts to tame it down lately...

{...unable to post picture here, see album instead!..}
(2012-Dec-23)

In addition to pest control it seems CFL bulbs aren't the safest option for a hot/humid enclosure (because of the integrated ballast). Considering the need to spray, etc., i'm now thinking of double-layered containment using glass (or translucide plastic) all around my primary chamber, to ease maintenance while allowing the light to enter and leaving most of the heat behind. Also, a totally sealed volume would make it possible to suffocate pests with CO2 flooding when convenient, but i want my plants to have wheels too...

Attachment 288786

Ultimately my goal would be to grow behind-the-window in order to enjoy this hobby as much as i used to in the very begining, having some good time in my rocking chair as i observed mother nature at work and appreciated the delicate smell of my dwarf ladies. Maybe i'd like to include some provisions for proper temperature management, most likely for a small humidifier in any case, since it's only meant for 3 - 5 plants at most.

Now that's a bit funny somehow because i've been defeated by The Borg and the next time we meet i could rely on a piece of furniture with the looks of a borg regeneration alcove... I'd find this ironic and yet equally fair!

[Egzoset]

Attachment 288797

Ah, at least hosting copies from external links does appear to work...



...but i can't re-used those it seems!...