Large Size Hydroponics Growing System，12 Pods Herb Garden Kit with Grow Lights, Indoor Herb Garden with Quiet Water Pump, Automatic Timer, Height Adjustable Up to 20", Indoor Garden Gift Home Decor

I've dabbled in hydroponics a bit, using pre-made systems and even making my own. For the price, this is a pretty good system, especially for beginners. It's simple and works well for greens. I haven't tried growing anything that fruits yet, but I'm going to try out some peppers next.Some things to note:* If your power goes out, the unit will not automatically power back on.* If you want this to turn off at a decent time at night, you have to turn it on pretty early in the morning. I can't remember how long the light stays on, but it's definitely more than 12 hours.* You can't adjust the time the lights stay on.* The nutrients supplied are pricey and algae will grow in the bottles. I recommend using something like General Hydroponics MaxiGro after you go through the supplied nutrients.* Do not use nutrients when starting from seed. This isn't stated in the manual and I should have known better. Just use plain water and add nutrients after they sprout.* Replacement coir sponges are hard to find for a decent price. I eventually did find 50 for twelve bucks. Note the taper on the bottom.* If you're reusing sponges, soak them in water mixed with some hydrogen peroxide overnight (about a 1:10 ratio).

The hydroponics growing system arrived in good time, complete, and very well packed. It was quick and easy to put together, the parts are sturdy, and interlocking parts fit snugly. The clear pod caps that you put over the seedlings until they reach sufficient size were tightly stacked, and I thought I didn't have the twelve that were needed; however, two or three caps stacked looked like one cap, so if you seem to be short, look carefully and make sure you don't have any multiple caps that look like one. The instructions for mixing the growing medium were a little confusing and I think could be stated more clearly next time they print the brochure, but I think I got it right. After two days one of my seeds had germinated, and now others are showing incipient roots after only four days. When the lighting is on, I don't need any other light on in my kitchen, even at night. When I first plugged in the system and started it up, the light canopy stayed on for sixteen hours and turned off for eight, just as the brochure described. On the second day, however, the lights turned off an hour early (so after 15 hours), and on subsequent days as well. I've thought about just restarting the system to see if it gets back on track, but it hardly seems worthwhile. I don't even think of it as a negative. So far I am delighted with the system, especially with the number of pods it holds and with the adjustable light canopy so you can accommodate the growing plants. In a few weeks I hope to be able to harvest chervil, parsley, cilantro, and tarragon, all of which I prefer fresh rather than dried. It is so much fun to see things grow and I eagerly check the pods every morning to see their progress. I'm 75 and still get a kick out of it. For this reason I think it would make a really nice gift, especially to a family that has young children. Oh, and the pump is very, very quiet.

I love this system (People have said things about it having good reviews because they are paid, my review was not paid for just my honest opinion)! I have been trying to grow vegetables (arugula, collard greens, kale, etc.) for my tortoise so that he has fresh, pesticide free things to eat. I tried for months to garden outside with the best possible conditions. Texas heat proved too much and I never got viable, mature plants.With this system, my seeds started sprouting within2 days. After a week, I had many seedlings growing. It took less than 4 weeks for me to have plants that had harvestable leaves. I have been harvesting arugula, collard greens, and kale for my tortoise. These three vegetables grew super fast. Lettuce grew with medium speed and Swiss chard and Spinach are still at a seedling stage after 1 month.Follow the directions and it is easy to use. I DIDN'T follow the instructions and put 2 seeds in each soil pod. That is the one thing I regretted. I did it because I thought some seeds would not sprout, but I only had 1 seed out of 24 that never sprouted. This made things a little crowded.The other thing I saw on some reviews that I agree with, is plant the seeds carefully placed based on how quickly things grow. I tried to do that, but ended up putting one of my slow growing veggies near the kale and so it does sort of crowd it out. However, harvesting regularly fixed that dilemma. The photo I have included is AFTER harvesting.Overall, I love this system and would definitely recommend it to anyone. Just make sure you have a place to put it where you don't mind if the light is on during the night (the light does not stay on all the time, but goes in shifts. It will come on during the night, so think of that when placing it).

I was able to grow enough greens to make a salad every night. I had a few herbs I couldn't get to grow, like cilantro and basil, both of which I can grow easily in soil. I took a break for the holiday months and decided to get started again. Now, it suddenly won't turn on. I've tried unplugging and plugging back in, checked all connections, and there is no life. At $53 (after tax), it paid for itself, but now I'm in the market to buy another hydroponic system after only a year and a half.