AeroGarden Master Gardener Deluxe User manual

Plant & Grow
Your Own Seeds
TM
Master Gardener Deluxe
GUIDE

Welcome
Thank you for
your purchase of the
Master Gardener
Deluxe Kit, created for
AeroGardeners™ like you
who want to use your own
seeds and design a custom
garden. In this Guide we
give you the tools you need
to have a successful and
pleasurable year-round
gardening experience.
I sincerely hope you enjoy
planting a garden of your
own design.
Best Regards,
Michael Bissonnette
Founder and CEO
AeroGrow International, Inc.
Introduction
Master Gardener Basics
“What’s Inside” ............ 4
Additional Supplies ......... 5
Designing Your Garden
Plant Type ................ 6
Plant Height .............. 6
Water and Light............ 7
Nutrients ................. 7
Life Span ................. 8
Plant Habit & Layout ........ 8
Building a Seed Pod
Planting Depth ............ 9
Number of Seeds...........10
Getting Ready ............ 10
Placing Seeds in
Grow Sponge .............11
Labeling Seed Pods ........ 13

CONTENTS
Planting Your Garden
Placing Seed Pods in Garden.. 14
Adding Water ............. 15
Lowering Lamp Hood ....... 15
Setting Light/Water Cycle .... 16
Feeding Your Garden
Choosing a Nutrient Regime .. 18
Nutrient Feeding Schedule
Options ................ 20
Adding Nutrients........... 21
Signs of Stress ............. 22
Tending Your Garden
Removing Domes .......... 23
Adding Water ............. 24
Raising Lights ............. 25
Thinning ................. 26
Pollinating ................ 27
Pruning .................. 28
Keeping Your
Garden Healthy............ 34
Plant Problems & Remedies .. 35
Harvesting Your Garden
Leafy Greens ..............36
Bunching Herbs ...........37
Branching Herbs ...........38
Preparing for Your
Next Garden ..............39
Appendices
Transplanting Seedlings......42
Supporting Plants ..........44
Rinsing and Relling ........47
Questions and Answers .....48
Troubleshooting ...........49
Setting Your Light Timer ......53
Reminders About Your
AeroGarden Setup..........55
Gardener’s Reference
and Log ..................57
Seed Information...........61

3Introduction
Introduction
The Master Gardener Deluxe
Kit is designed for the experi-
enced AeroGardener. It includes
the supplies you’ll need to plant
and grow three custom gardens
in your AeroGarden.
While the AeroGarden provides
the ideal environment for
growing plants, there are many
decisions you need to make that
will impact the outcome of your
garden. This Guide will assist
you in deciding what to plant,
how to plant your seeds and
how to care for your plants
once they are growing. We
recommend that you read the
entire Guide before starting
your garden.
Note: Planting an AeroGarden with your own seeds is a bit of an experiment.
We hope that most of your efforts will be successful and that you enjoy
the discovery process. If you have not used an AeroGarden with one of
our Seed Kits, we highly recommend that you do so before planting
your own seeds. The knowledge you’ll gain by planting, tending, and
harvesting a garden from one of our Seed Kits will help guide your
choices about what to plant and how to use your AeroGarden.

4
Introduction
The Master Gardener Deluxe Kit has supplies for planting three
custom gardens – that’s enough for one year’s worth of indoor
gardening!
Master Gardener Basics
What’s Inside…
Domes (7) Grow Sponges (21)Seed Pod Labels (21)
Small Nutrient Tablets Large Nutrient Tablets
Split-Apart Baskets (7)

5Introduction
Additional Supplies Needed…
In addition to what is included in your Master Gardener Deluxe
Kit, there are a few additional items that you will need.
An AeroGarden
An Iron
Glue
A Permanent Marker
Seeds
Master Gardener Basics (Continued)
Remember to replace your Grow Bulbs after 6 months of use. Grow
Bulbs can be ordered from our website at: www.aerogrow.com.
!

6
Designing Your Garden
Designing Your Garden
SELECTING PLANTS
The following guidelines will
help you plant and grow a
thriving indoor garden. Take
the time up front to plan your
garden and you’ll reap the
rewards of beautiful plants and
bountiful harvests.
Plant Type
While we encourage you to try
growing a variety of plant types
in your AeroGarden, there are a
few that will just not do well in an
aeroponic system. Subterranean
plants, such as carrots, beets,
potatoes or peanuts should not be
planted in your AeroGarden. In
addition, plants that
require very dry
conditions and
have very
low water
requirements,
such as cactus
and succulents,
will not thrive in
your AeroGarden.
Plant Height
The maximum height of the Aero-
Garden Lamp Hood is 12 inches
from the Grow Surface, which
means it is important to select
plants that will not grow taller
than this – or to choose plants that
can be pruned to stay within this
height restriction, such as basil.
If you decide to grow a garden
with a variety of different plants,
you will also need to consider
their relative heights. Try to grow
plants that will be about the same
height as they mature. Again, you
may be able to prune some of the
12”
(Continued on next page)
HELPFUL HINT: When choosing seeds
for your AeroGarden, look for dwarf or
miniature varieties.

7Designing Your Garden
plants in your garden to achieve
this. Using plants that grow at the
same rate lets you adjust the Lamp
Hood so that they all receive the
amount of light they need to grow
and thrive.
What happens when you com-
bine plants of different heights?
Leaves of tall plants touch the
lights and brown and burn. The
shorter plants will be shaded and
the light they need to grow will be
blocked. Short plants may start to
“stretch” to reach the lights and
look oppy and unhealthy.
Water and Light
The plant setting on the Control
Panel regulates the amount of light
and water for the entire garden.
This means that you will have the
most success if you plant a garden
with similar water and light needs.
For example, we found that
lettuces grow extremely well if
there is a constant ow of water
over the roots. On the other hand,
herbs, such as basil or cilantro,
do best when the water pump is
shut off for some period of time
each day.
HELPFUL HINT: Plant a garden with
plants that have similar growth rates
and heights, as in the Salad Greens
Garden (shown).
Nutrients
Choose plants that have similar
nutrient requirements to avoid
overfeeding some plants while
underfeeding others. For example,
mixing plants with fairly low
requirements (such as lettuces)
with plants that have much higher
nutrient requirements (such as
basil) is not recommended. There
are 2 different types of nutrients
to choose from in the Master
Gardener Deluxe Kit and more
specic guidelines on which
one(s) to use are provided in the
“Feeding Your Garden” section of
this Guide.
Designing Your Garden (Continued)

8
Designing Your Garden
Life Span
Try to choose plants that have
similar life spans so that you do
not end up with empty spots in
your garden. For example, dwarf
tomatoes and cilantro are a great
avor combination, but they
would be hard to grow in the
same AeroGarden. The cilantro
will be near the end of its
growing season just as your dwarf
tomatoes are starting to ripen!
Plant Habit and Layout
Some plants are bushy, others
feathery, some grow straight,
others branch out. As you plant
your garden, think about the
shape and growth habit of the
plants. You may want to put the
feathery leafed plants in the front
where they can be seen. Save the
back row for the plants that grow
straight or bushy to make a nice
background for the more delicate
plants in the front. You can always
experiment with arrangements.
Even after you’ve planted your
garden, you can remove the Seed
Pods and rearrange your garden.
(Just be gentle with the roots!)
Horizontal Spreading
If you grow a garden with plants
that have extensive branching or
will spread horizontally, you may
want to leave some of the Grow
Surface Openings empty. (For
example, we recommend planting
only 3 Seed Pods for dwarf toma-
toes and peppers, and leaving the
remaining 4 Grow Surface Open-
ings empty.) This will give the plants
room to grow and assure that each
plant gets the light it needs.
If you do this, be sure to cover the
unplanted Grow Surface Openings
to prevent algae growth.
HELPFUL HINT: To cover unplanted
Grow Surface Openings, choose a
material that will stand up to a moist
environment, such as aluminum foil
or the plastic top from a milk jug (shown).

9Building a Seed Pod
Building a Seed Pod
Once you have collected the
extra supplies needed (shown),
and decided which seeds to
plant in your AeroGarden,
there are two additional
variables that you need to
consider when building a
Seed Pod: How deep to plant
the seeds and how many
seeds to plant per Seed Pod.
Here are some general guide-
lines that will help you with
these choices.
Planting Depth
The ideal planting depth of
seeds in the AeroGarden
will not necessarily be the
same as recommended on
seed packages from suppliers.
In general, we have found that
small seeds need a shallower
planting depth than large
seeds. Plant oregano (a very
small seed) at 1/8” depth and
cilantro (a large seed) at 1/4”
depth. Seeds planted too deep
may rot before germinating.
Oregano – 1/8” deep Cilantro – 1/4” deep
Additional Supplies: glue, iron, permanent
marker and seeds.

10
Building a Seed Pod
(Continued on next page)
Number of Seeds
As with an outdoor garden, it is im-
portant to plant extra seeds in each
Seed Pod to ensure success. A rule
of thumb is that for larger seeds and
fruiting plants, sow only a few extra
seeds. Increase the number of seeds
as the seed size gets smaller and for
plants that grow in bunches, such as
chives. Typically, 6 seeds per Seed
Pod does the trick.
Getting Ready
To get started building a Seed Pod, here are a few preliminary steps
that will help the process go smoothly.
•Preheat iron to a moderate tempera-
ture (between the silk and cotton
setting on most irons, 300°- 400°F).
Do not use steam.
•Write the name of the seeds you
will sow on the Label(s) with a
permanent marker. Doing this before
you start planting prevents accidental
mislabeling of Seed Pods.
•If you are re-using a Split-Apart
Basket, be sure to scrape any
residue from the previous Label off
the surface or the remnant glue will
prevent the new Label from adhering.
Chive seeds Dwarf tomato
seeds
Grow Sponges with suggested number
of seeds.

11 Building a Seed Pod
Building a Seed Pod (Continued)
Placing Seeds in Grow Sponge
It is helpful to use a little bit of glue to keep the seeds at the desired
planting depth and prevent them from rolling away. You’ll only need a
dab. Be sure to use a water-soluble, non-toxic, white school glue.
•Squirt some glue on a piece
of paper.
•Gently open the slit in the
Grow Sponge.
•Using a cotton swab, toothpick,
matchstick, or something else
with which you can grab a small
amount of glue, apply a thin
coat of glue on the inside of
the Grow Sponge at the desired
planting depth.
•Place the seeds on the glue.
Keep the seeds away from the
side edges of the Grow Sponge.
It is okay if the seeds overlap one
another. (Large seeds can be easily
put in place with your nger.)
A little trick for tiny seeds:
• Spread the seeds on a at surface.
•Open Grow Sponge and gently
touch the glued surface to
the seeds.

12
Building a Seed Pod
(Continued on next page)
•Close the Grow Sponge and
insert it into Split-Apart Basket
(slit side up).
•Be sure the base of the Grow
Sponge is resting on the bot-
tom of the Split-Apart Basket.
HELPFUL HINT: Don’t risk mislabeling
your Seed Pods! If you are planting
multiple Seed Pods with the same seed
variety, then continue placing seeds in
additional Grow Sponges. If not, take
the time to apply Labels as you go.

Labeling Seed Pods
The Label not only helps you keep track of what you planted and the
planting date, but it also promotes germination and decreases algae
growth. Be sure to take the time to ll out and apply the Labels.
Remember to preheat your iron to a moderate temperature
(between the silk and cotton setting on most irons, 300°-400°F).
Do not use steam.
HELPFUL HINT: Before you begin ironing, make sure the Grow Sponge is pushed
down to the bottom of the Split-Apart Basket. This will prevent the Grow Sponge and
seeds from getting overheated.
•Place Seed Pod Label on top of the Split-Apart Basket.
•Iron for a total of 10 seconds as follows:
– 5 seconds with the iron in one place.
– 5 seconds moving the Seed Pod around the outside
edge of the iron – to ensure Label is secure.
Your Seed Pod is now ready to plant.
13 Building a Seed Pod
Building a Seed Pod (Continued)
WARNING: Burns can occur from
touching hot metal parts, hot water
or steam. Extreme caution should
be used near children. Never leave
iron turned on or unattended, espe-
cially when children are present.

14
Planting Your Garden
Planting Your Garden
Planting your custom Seed Pod is the same as planting one of
the Seed Pods from an AeroGarden Seed Kit. We recommend
that you record the planting date, seed depth, and number of
seeds planted in the Gardener’s Log in the back of this Guide
(sample shown below). This will be a great reference when
planting future gardens.
Placing Seed Pods in Your AeroGarden
•Insert the Seed Pod into a Grow
Surface Opening by pressing the
Seed Pod down rmly until rim of
the Seed Pod almost touches the
Grow Surface. (The direction of the
Seed Pod does not matter, but for
easy reading, we recommend you
have the Label facing forward.)
•Place a Dome on top of the Seed Pod.
Note: Please refer to the Quick Start Guide included with your
original AeroGarden or, if you don’t have one, contact your
retailer.
Sample of Gardener’s
Log found in the back
of this Guide.
(Continued on next page)
Pod Plant Type Seed Planting Germination Nutrient
# (# of seeds planted) Depth Date Time Regime*
1 Chives (20) 1/8” 12/1/06 7 days B
2 Cilantro (6) 1/4” 12/1/06 11 days B
3
4
5
6
7

15 Planting Your Garden
Adding Water
Add water to the AeroGarden
Bowl up to “Fill to Here.”
We recommend using municipal
tap water, bottled or puried
water. Well or softened water
SHOULD NOT be used because
the extra minerals in these sources
may be harmful to aeroponically
grown plants.
Lowering Lamp Hood
Set the Lamp Hood at the
lowest setting when starting
a new garden. Most seeds need
maximum light to germinate.
“Fill To Here”
Planting Your Garden (Continued)

16
Planting Your Garden
(Continued on next page)
Setting the AeroGarden
Light/Water Cycle
The AeroGarden has a timer that
automatically controls the length of
time the lights and the water pump
are on and off. There are 5 different
plant settings on the Control Panel
from which to choose. This allows
Control Panel Light and Pump Cycles
Note: On all settings, the pump always runs when the lights are on.
you to nd the ideal combination
of light and moisture for the plants
you grow. Use the chart below to
determine which plant setting is
best for your garden.
HELPFUL HINT: “Herbs/Basil” & “Strawberry”
are the only setting for which the pump is
always off when the lights are off. All other
settings have a “wet” interval, when the lights
are off but the pump is still running.
24-Hour Light Cycle 24-Hour Pump Cycle Hours Lights
Control are Off with
Panel Hours Lights Hours Lights Hours Pump Hours Pump Pump
Setting Are ON Are OFF Is ON is OFF Running
Tomatoes/
16 8 20 4 4
Peppers
Salad
16.5 7.5 24 0 7.5
Greens
Herbs/Basil 17 7 17 7 0
Flowers 15.5 8.5 20 4 4.5
Strawberry 15 9 15 9 0

17 Planting Your Garden
Planting Your Garden (Continued)
Choosing a setting for a plant that
is not listed on the Control Panel
will take a little bit of guesswork.
For example, eggplant grown in a
traditional soil garden has similar
needs to dwarf tomatoes, so select-
ing the “tomatoes/peppers” setting
would be a good place to start.
If you are not sure which setting to
use, keep your eyes open for signs
of plant stress. You can always
change the setting.
HELPFUL HINT: On the “Salad Greens”
setting, the pump is always running. Use
this setting only for plants that can toler-
ate constant moisture, such as lettuces
and other leafy greens.
Note: You can program your AeroGarden so that the lights turn off
and on at a time that is convenient for you. Please refer to
“Setting Your Light Timer” in the Appendices section of this
Guide for detailed instructions.

18
Feeding Your Garden
Feeding Your Garden
The Master Gardener Deluxe Kit comes with two different types of
nutrient tablets to meet the needs of a variety of plant types.
The amount of nutrients in your garden increases with tablet size.
The nutrient tablets consist mainly of mineral salts that provide
13 micro- and macro-nutrients that all plants require. There is also
seaweed for a boost of 65 micro-nutrients and trace elements.
Each nutrient tablet also has ingredients that will keep the water
in your AeroGarden at a pH level that is ideal for aeroponically
grown plants.
Choosing a Nutrient Regime
Most gardens will need a combination of the small and large nutrient
tablets. Since we don’t know what’s growing in your garden, we can only
offer some guidelines for deciding which tablets to use.
Small Tablets
These tablets should always be used
when you rst plant your garden.
They have a lower amount of
nutrients, and are sufcient for
sprouting and the rst two weeks
of growth. Leafy greens, such as
lettuces, grow best with
2 Small Tablets at each
feeding for their entire
life cycle.
HELPFUL HINT: We have also found that
woody herbs that prefer dry conditions (such
as oregano, savory and thyme) grow best with
Small Nutrient Tablets for their entire life cycle.
Lettuce grown with Small Nutrient
Tablets.
(Continued on next page)

19 Feeding Your Garden
Large Tablets
Most plant types other than leafy
greens and woody herbs, need the
higher amount of nutrients found
in the Large Tablets after 4 weeks
(i.e. the third feeding after planting.)
Mint, basil and cilantro are exam-
ples of herbs that grow
well with 2 Large
Tablets at each feeding
for the remainder of
their life cycle. Gourmet Herbs grown with a
combination of Small and Large
Nutrient Tablets.
Feeding Your Garden (Continued)