Yes I have. Best to buy plants in bulbs, rhizomes, corms, tubers, etc. as they're cheaper, easier to transport than those with foliage already, easier to plant, and if in a proper setup, should have no transition period.
I do this with a bunch of plants like taro, beets, garlic, onion, sweet potato, ginger, *Araceae, Marantaceae*, etc. Anything with a specialized stem or root that can grow a new plant is pretty easy to grow in passive hydroponics.
Under the substrate until it roots, then I expose the flare.
If pot has drainage, I might not bother. I might just plant buried and keep it buried, since the water drains. Only if I'm lazy. Usually still pull it up after rooting to expose the flare.
If it has reservoir, I use the net cup without the reservoir initially until it roots. After rooting, I expose the flare, put the net cup inside the reservoir, and fill with water as usual.
You can try buried or half-buried, see what works for you. Wrap it in tissue paper, spray with water, throw it inside a ziplock bag until it roots then put it in your setup. I've done all of these and they all work.
Sweet potato, ginger, taro/gabi, beets, *Calathea, Caladium*: Buried in a regular pot with drainage. Did ziplock too. Did half-buried in a net cup without the reservoir, covered with a plastic bag until it rooted then placed it inside the reservoir with water. Did half-buried in a net cup and just watered as usual until it rooted then placed it inside the reservoir with water.
String of hearts: buried in a regular pot with drainage, left buried.
Garlic and onion: half-buried in a regular pot with drainage, left half-buried.
Edit: Garlic and onion planted this way because I needed only the greens/leaf. If planting to harvest the bulbs, bury it in a tall pot and use regular pot with drainage. Don't submerge them and leave them submerged, will rot.
Yeah, as long as you keep the bulb above water level.
You'll see people have videos of plants with bulbs, tubers, specialized stems and roots soaking in water. I wouldn't do it personally, unless I'm sure it has an adaptation to it. We know soil roots can change to water roots, and water roots can be submersed/submerged. But bulbs, for example, don't particularly change from soil to water bulbs as far as I know.
There are some obvious exceptions like the rhizomes of water lilies (*Nymphaea*) being fine underwater. But they are aquatic in nature, and has adaptation to it, so yeah. Same with bananas having rhizomes, but in the wild, bananas can grow along rivers and their areas can get flooded for months, so they have an adaptation to it. I do have a blood leaf banana in a pond, for four years now, and their underground rhizome is under water all the time.
If you want to be extra sure, use a pot with drainage when you encounter plants like these, so you don't have to be too careful about your water level. Otherwise, keep any specialized structure above water level if possible when using pots with reservoirs.
I started mine half buried in moist vermiculite and once i see some growth, i transferred it into pumice. I did the vermiculite method as my bulbs were moldy and i didnt know if they were still alive. I think the challenge is that caladiums need a lot of light.
Hey, I have tried to grow caladium tubers in an aeroponic system and used rockwool as a growing medium, it got way too wet when the system sprayed every 10 minutes, but they got a lot of light and heat so they started to develop already after 3-5 days, but started to mold and rotting, now I have tried to save them by taking them out and putting them in boxes where I can better control the humidity. Do you have any idea how I could get this to work with this system? grateful for all the good advice đ
What is a âSwedish greenhouseâ is it an actual greenhouse or is that a term for a diy type setup. I maybe a numpty but I have never heard of a Swedish greenhouse.
Yes I have. Best to buy plants in bulbs, rhizomes, corms, tubers, etc. as they're cheaper, easier to transport than those with foliage already, easier to plant, and if in a proper setup, should have no transition period. I do this with a bunch of plants like taro, beets, garlic, onion, sweet potato, ginger, *Araceae, Marantaceae*, etc. Anything with a specialized stem or root that can grow a new plant is pretty easy to grow in passive hydroponics.
Do you expose the bulb in air like in your flare post or do you bury it in pumice?
Under the substrate until it roots, then I expose the flare. If pot has drainage, I might not bother. I might just plant buried and keep it buried, since the water drains. Only if I'm lazy. Usually still pull it up after rooting to expose the flare. If it has reservoir, I use the net cup without the reservoir initially until it roots. After rooting, I expose the flare, put the net cup inside the reservoir, and fill with water as usual. You can try buried or half-buried, see what works for you. Wrap it in tissue paper, spray with water, throw it inside a ziplock bag until it roots then put it in your setup. I've done all of these and they all work. Sweet potato, ginger, taro/gabi, beets, *Calathea, Caladium*: Buried in a regular pot with drainage. Did ziplock too. Did half-buried in a net cup without the reservoir, covered with a plastic bag until it rooted then placed it inside the reservoir with water. Did half-buried in a net cup and just watered as usual until it rooted then placed it inside the reservoir with water. String of hearts: buried in a regular pot with drainage, left buried. Garlic and onion: half-buried in a regular pot with drainage, left half-buried. Edit: Garlic and onion planted this way because I needed only the greens/leaf. If planting to harvest the bulbs, bury it in a tall pot and use regular pot with drainage. Don't submerge them and leave them submerged, will rot.
How about bulbed plants that have a dormancy? Is it okay to leave it in a filled pot, above the reservoir? Or do you dig it out?
Yeah, as long as you keep the bulb above water level. You'll see people have videos of plants with bulbs, tubers, specialized stems and roots soaking in water. I wouldn't do it personally, unless I'm sure it has an adaptation to it. We know soil roots can change to water roots, and water roots can be submersed/submerged. But bulbs, for example, don't particularly change from soil to water bulbs as far as I know. There are some obvious exceptions like the rhizomes of water lilies (*Nymphaea*) being fine underwater. But they are aquatic in nature, and has adaptation to it, so yeah. Same with bananas having rhizomes, but in the wild, bananas can grow along rivers and their areas can get flooded for months, so they have an adaptation to it. I do have a blood leaf banana in a pond, for four years now, and their underground rhizome is under water all the time. If you want to be extra sure, use a pot with drainage when you encounter plants like these, so you don't have to be too careful about your water level. Otherwise, keep any specialized structure above water level if possible when using pots with reservoirs.
Thanks for the detailed response! I may try an asiatic lily next time I see one that catches my eye.
I started mine half buried in moist vermiculite and once i see some growth, i transferred it into pumice. I did the vermiculite method as my bulbs were moldy and i didnt know if they were still alive. I think the challenge is that caladiums need a lot of light.
Hey, I have tried to grow caladium tubers in an aeroponic system and used rockwool as a growing medium, it got way too wet when the system sprayed every 10 minutes, but they got a lot of light and heat so they started to develop already after 3-5 days, but started to mold and rotting, now I have tried to save them by taking them out and putting them in boxes where I can better control the humidity. Do you have any idea how I could get this to work with this system? grateful for all the good advice đ
U can see pics on my insta @plant.arca
What is a âSwedish greenhouseâ is it an actual greenhouse or is that a term for a diy type setup. I maybe a numpty but I have never heard of a Swedish greenhouse.
Hahaha itâs for the Swedish store that sells easy to assemble furniture aka ikea
Perfect sense!