Strawberry Prep And Planting
We decided to plant the strawberries in one gallon icing buckets from the bakery at a local grocery store. To start, we cut holes in the bucket lids:
Maybe our circles weren't very round...
Maybe our circles weren't very round...
But, it all worked out in the end!
The red lava rock is very dusty and had to be cleaned before we could use it.
Gross! Kind of looks like my Mom's spaghetti sauce!
The red lava rock is very dusty and had to be cleaned before we could use it.
Gross! Kind of looks like my Mom's spaghetti sauce!
After about two dozen rinses! Not finished yet...
I continued to rinse the red lava rock until it FINALLY came clean, then we were able to start potting the strawberries.
We removed the strawberries from the little nursery cups that they came in and carefully washed the roots to remove as much soil as possible. We placed a few lava rocks in the bottom of a net cup, guided a few of the roots through the holes, and topped the pot with lava rocks to stabilize the plant.
We added tap water to our icing buckets and prepared to add the B'Cuzz Root. The instructions on the B'Cuzz called for 1 mL per liter or 1 tsp per gallon. Dummy time again! We don't own a measuring spoon, or any other similar device! Is a capful closer to an mL or a tsp? Who knows? Screw it! We placed varying amounts of B'Cuzz in each bucket, then dropped our net pots into their holes.
Now, the next part was a little irritating. The basis of the Kratky method is that plants grow "oxygen roots" and "water roots." In order for the plants to survive, the roots need to be able to access oxygen and the water/nutrient mix. The net pots should be submerged about 1/4" into the solution, leaving an oxygen gap. We had a difficult time getting the water level just right, but we finally managed it.
Our first four babies!
I continued to rinse the red lava rock until it FINALLY came clean, then we were able to start potting the strawberries.
We removed the strawberries from the little nursery cups that they came in and carefully washed the roots to remove as much soil as possible. We placed a few lava rocks in the bottom of a net cup, guided a few of the roots through the holes, and topped the pot with lava rocks to stabilize the plant.
We added tap water to our icing buckets and prepared to add the B'Cuzz Root. The instructions on the B'Cuzz called for 1 mL per liter or 1 tsp per gallon. Dummy time again! We don't own a measuring spoon, or any other similar device! Is a capful closer to an mL or a tsp? Who knows? Screw it! We placed varying amounts of B'Cuzz in each bucket, then dropped our net pots into their holes.
Now, the next part was a little irritating. The basis of the Kratky method is that plants grow "oxygen roots" and "water roots." In order for the plants to survive, the roots need to be able to access oxygen and the water/nutrient mix. The net pots should be submerged about 1/4" into the solution, leaving an oxygen gap. We had a difficult time getting the water level just right, but we finally managed it.
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