I believe a GoGreen Automatic Sprouter comes first for cleansing, healing and rising to heights of super health and energy. You harvest living greens within a week.

But there comes a time when we want bigger greens for our salads and smoothies – greens that take a few weeks to grow, like lettuce, kale, collard and sweet baby spinach.

We tire of the old dead greens from the store, nearly dead in enzymes and Vitamin C, and saturated in carbon monoxide poisoning from long hours on the road (yes greens are breathing it in).

We want to pick our greens FRESH and ALIVE, with full-of-life active enzymes that are growing our greens in the moment we eat them.

We want 100% guarantee that our greens are organic, are not genetically modified, and are free of e.coli. Only in our home when we buy the seed, do we get this guarantee.

We want to save heirloom seeds and genetic biodiversity – say NO to GMO's (genetically modified organisms). Only home gardeners can save our seeds, as Ken Ausubel points out in Seeds of Change: The Living Treasure : The Passionate Story of the Growing Movement to Restore Biodiversity.

Botanical gardens are trying to save seeds by freezing them. But seeds need a living garden to stay alive and adapt to changing planetary conditions!

With a hydroponic garden, you enjoy fresh greens every day! Blend them with fruit for sweetness – see Green Smoothie recipe.

Two hydroponic systems I fancy are the Indoor Verti-Gro model VT-4 (4 pots) and the Outdoor Verti-Gro model VT-12 (12 pots). Both are 100% soil-free hydroponics with fully automatic watering. Enjoy fresh Living vegetables like lettuce and tomatoes!

Automatic sets you FREE – no watering, no dirt, no weeding, no bugs, no shopping! Your hydroponic Garden does it all for you.

Styrofoam pots insulate the plant roots, protecting them from extreme temperatures. Root temperature control is the single most important condition when it comes to growing healthy plants in abundance.

When plants have small root systems and are fed automatically every day, there's no need for a big pot. Bigger pots only mean more soil or hydroponic mix, more water, more fertilizer.

There is no soil in the mix that comes with it – perlite and vermiculite (guaranteed asbestos-free). This is a clean, light growing media that is especially suited for lettuce, herbs, and other green leaves. It's very porous allowing for a lot of roots in a small area.

The 5-quart pots are 9x9x8 inches and made of high density EPS plastic that is so durable, it lasts for up to 10 years. EPS is Expanded Polystyrene, similar to Styrofoam.

You sprinkle seeds directly into the pots – there's no hassle with seedling pots and transplanting.

The Indoor Garden is a re-circulating system. The fertilizer solution is re-used for a period of time, saving you money. Go away for a week and your Garden is still watered daily!

It stands on its own nutrient tank, a normal 18-inch planter. The tank Lid is made to hold the weight of all those greens! The tank holds both water and organic fertilizer in solution.

Both Gardens come with a complete Guide to Hydroponic Growing.

Wild Weeds – highest in nutrients, our true heirlooms! – e.g., burdock, chickweed, chicory (wild endive), clover, dandelion, lambsquarter (goosefoot), mallow (malva), peppergrass, purslane, sheep sorrel, shepherd's purse, watercress and wild rose.

Herbs – turn your salads into a gastronomic delight! – e.g., anise, arugula (rocket), basil, caraway, chives, cilantro, dill, fennel, hops, lemon balm, marjoram, oregano, mints, mustard, myrrh, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, and thyme. The fresh small leaves are the most nutritional and taste the best. Pick continuously on all herbs for 2-3 months. It's best to pull out old plants and start new ones every three months. Enjoy fresh mint and lemon balm tea!

Peppers – smaller varieties such as chili peppers and banana peppers are the best. The plant for bell peppers grows quite large – pinching the plant after two sets of blooms will keep the size reasonable. The quality of peppers in your Verti-Gro is excellent.

Tomatoes – smaller varieties and bush type cherry tomatoes do very well and are tasty and nutritional. If the plant gets too big simply cut the growing tip off and force it to bush. Keep in mind that the root is being fed perfectly in the small pot.

Strawberries – have a small root system, but are not the easiest to grow. They are perennials, prefer cooler weather and a lot of sun.

Root crops – Scallions grow well, but onions, carrots, radishes, potatoes are not recommended.

Flowers – enjoy edible flowers such as nasturtiums, violas and pansies, in salads and as vitamin supplements. All flowers up to a height of 12 inches do well, such as begonias, miniature carnations and snapdragons. Plant one pot with flowers for their color, fragrance, beauty and food value.

Regular size tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, zucchini, squashes and other vine-type plants such as melons, peas and beans can be planted in the bottom pot and allowed to grow along the ground. Or grow them in a higher pot and support outside the stack on a pole. Check your organic seed catalogs for dwarf or bushy plants.

Note – tomatoes, peppers, and strawberries need to be pollinated by bees, wind or by hand.

If your hydroponic garden is in a dark corner, then any extra lighting will work, even household lights. Personally I prefer full-spectrum grow lights. Light is a nutrient for plants, as it is for us. We prefer to get as close to natural light as possible. I'm sure plants do too!

Remember to switch the lights off at night. If needed, use a timer on the light. You stress your greens if you shine light on them for 24 hours.

Plants have two cycles:

• a Manufacturing cycle – when it's light, their green leaves absorb carbon from the air to make nutrients like amino acids, vitamins, fatty acids and other phytochemicals. These are all carbon chains in different patterns, like Irish lacework.
• a Growth cycle – when it's dark, they act like animals. They breathe in oxygen and grow, using the nutrients they made in the day for each cell to do its job. Just as our cells use plant nutrients to cleanse, repair and grow.

  

   

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