You’ve got your hydroponic grow system picked out – what next? Aside from your seeds and grow medium, you’ll probably also need some hydroponic fertilizer. Today we’re covering our top picks for hydroponic fertilizer (especially ones that are beginner friendly!), how to use them, and…
Ever wondered how to use coco peat in hydroponics, or even what it is? Continuing our exploration of different growing mediums for hydroponics, we are covering one of the more well known mediums today – coco peat! What is Coco Peat? Coco Peat, a type…
Ever thought about making a Venus fly trap terrarium?
They’re easy to make, and a super fun “pet” to add to maybe your desk, or other assortment of indoor plants.
In this article we’re covering how to make a Venus fly trap terrarium, how to care for it, and why they’re a great plant for your indoor garden.
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Venus flytraps are a fun plant for reasons you’ve probably heard of. This plant is carnivorous and can eat small insects, which makes it unique from (probably) most plants that you have already.
Venus fly traps have a reputation of being difficult to care for. However, provided you have the right setup, once you get the hang of it they’re not any more difficult than your average houseplant.
Lets cover the basic materials for making Venus fly trap terrarium.
Venus fly traps are particular with their soil. They thrive in soil that will stay damp, but still provide ample drainage. We recommend avoiding typical potting soil.
Instead, a mix of 50% peat moss and 50% sand will allow your Venus fly trap to thrive. You can either mix it yourself, or buy a pre-made mix like this carnivorous plant soil for your Venus fly trap terrarium.
Selecting your Venus fly trap terrarium container is one of the most fun parts of the process. You can pick something simple and classic, or something fun and unique. You can also plant Venus fly trap in a normal pot – it doesn’t have to be enclosed in a glass dome like a typical terrarium would be.
A few options for terrariums are below, but feel free to choose your own! Be as creative as you like with selecting the terrarium. An ideal size is 10cm in diameter for one plant, or 20cm if you’re planting 2.
This part is totally optional, but if you’d like accent plants in your Venus fly trap terrarium then feel free to add additional plants too!
Moss makes a great addition to the terrarium to create a complete look.
Last, but certainly not least, you of course need a Venus fly trap for your terrarium. These plants have increased in popularity lately so they’re relatively easy to find.
Your local gardening store or even places like Home Depot or Lowes might have them. Its best to call ahead and check though just in case, as some times of the year they’re not offered. We’ve even seen them in the gardening sections of Walmart!
You can also of course order a Venus fly trap online. Amazon sells Venus Fly traps, but you may end up paying a premium compared to what you would pay in person.
After you’ve assembled all of your materials, creating a Venus fly trap terrarium is pretty simple.
You’ll start by creating a base layer of soil in your terrarium. Then simply planting the Venus fly trap, and other accent plants as you desire. Carefully remove your fly trap from its temporary planter and place in the terrarium, then arrange the other components as desired.
In our next section we’ll cover maintenance of your Venus fly trap terrarium and how to care for your new plant.
Lets go over some common questions and care for your Venus fly trap.
Probably the first question you’ll ask is how to feed your new carnivorous plant. Its true, fly traps do like to eat small insects like flies, spiders, and other bugs.
However, Venus fly traps really only need to eat every 1 – 2 months. So even indoors, they can usually manage feeding on their own without you having to hand feed them. You can also place them outdoors on a patio or window box and they’ll feed themselves.
If you’re concerned, you can of course feed your plant by hand. They’ll appreciate the extra effort!
Venus fly traps will do best in bright, indirect sunlight indoors. Be careful not to place in direct light as this can damage the plant.
Read also: Best Grow Lights for Small Spaces
Venus fly traps require the soil to remain fairly moist, but provide ample drainage.
As we mentioned in an earlier section, its great to have a mix of 50% peat moss and 50% sand to create the right environment for your fly trap. When watering them, thoroughly soak the soil to ensure its damp all the way through. Let the soil get moderately dry before watering again.
Venus fly traps do need close to pure water, meaning that depending on what region you live in tap water may not be suitable for your plant.
Similarly, bottled water can often have added minerals too. The best option to use when watering your Venus fly trap is either rain water or distilled water.
Venus fly traps do not require any fertilizer!
This is another reason to avoid potting soil, as they often have added nutrients already mixed in. No need to worry about adding plant food or any type of fertilizer once planted though. Venus fly traps gather the nutrients they need from air and insects they consume.
Venus fly traps thrive at room temperature, no need to adjust your room’s conditions for their benefit!
One lesser known fact is that you can actually harm your flytrap by continuously poking the traps. Poking can trigger the trap to close, essentially because the fly trap thinks that its caught some food to digest.
After poking though, it can take the plant up to 24 hours to reopen the trap, meaning it will miss any insects that cross its path in between. Also, some traps after being poked never reopen, which damages the plant in the long run.
Interested in other types of terrariums? Marimo Moss balls can also be put in terrariums, similar to Venus fly traps! Check out our Complete Care Guide for Marimo Moss Balls for more info.
Today, we’re covering how to use rockwool in hydroponics. Rockwool is a growing medium that you “plant” your seeds in. Its different than a traditional soil, and is used in hydroponic growing systems very frequently to support the seeds growth and prevent it from falling…
Ever heard of leca? Leca can be used as a growing medium for many types of plants. Today we’re covering what leca is, the pros and cons of using it, and the different applications you can use leca for. What is Leca? Leca stands for…
If you’re new to gardening, a plant humidifier may not be something you’ve ever heard of or considered. We’re covering the best options for plant humidifiers today and if/when they’re necessary for your indoor plants.
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In truth, some plants can survive and even thrive without extra humidity. Succulents, for example, thrive in dry conditions with little moisture in the air.
For most other types of house plants adding extra humidity is beneficial to the plant health. Some plants will tolerate dryer conditions, so if you ask if it is absolutely necessary for every type of plant, the answer is no. However most plants would appreciate some extra moisture and some plants really do need the additional help to grow and thrive in an indoor environment.
Especially in the winter months, the air in your home can get particularly dry. Just like this weather is rough on your skin, your plants suffer too! Many popular indoor plants like fiddle leaf figs are tropical plants too, and appreciate as much humidity as they can get.
There are two main types of plant humidifiers that you can purchase.
The evaporative plant humidifier works probably like you’d expect – it creates humidity by heating water and causing it to evaporate. Evaporative humidifiers can be cheaper than other types, but has a few downfalls. First, its generally noisier. Second, because its heating water you’ll have to be careful not to burn anything from the heat within the unit when changing or refilling.
Evaporative humidifiers also come with filters which helps prevent bacteria and mold, but it is something that you’ll have to change and clean. The frequency that you have to change this filter will be noted on the instructions when you purchase your plant humidifier.
An ultrasonic plant humidifier uses high frequency vibration to cause the water to evaporate. These humidifiers tend to be a little more expensive than evaporative plant humidifier. They have no filter to change. They’re generally quieter than other types.
The biggest perk is that unlike evaporative humidifiers, they’re not heating up any water so there’s no risk of burning anything when changing the water.
| Type: | Ultrasonic |
| Capacity: | 21 L/5.5 Gal |
| Run Time: | 48 hours |
Our number one pick that combines affordability with features is the Lacidoll humidifier. This ultrasonic humidifier has an LED screen that tells you the current room humidity.
There are 4 mist level settings to switch between Low, Medium, High and Turbo output. It also has built-in humidistat accurately detects the humidity in your room and auto adjusts to your preset humidity level from 40% to 90%.
| Type: | Ultrasonic |
| Capacity: | 285-376 sq. ft |
| Run Time: | up to 40 hours |
The Levoit Humidifier is a quiet, sleek humidifier with several key features that make it our premium option. It has a run time of up to 40 hours, so you wont constantly be refiling this machine.
What sets it apart from other models is the smart features. This plant humidifier can connect into Alexa and Google Assistant systems. You can also connect to it via an app and seamlessly monitor moisture levels with ease.
Apart from the smart features, this unit also offers 3 different mist levels, a 360 degree nozzle, and is noted as a super quiet unit by many reviewers on Amazon.
| Type: | Ultrasonic |
| Capacity: | 175 sq. ft. |
| Run Time: | 7-10 hours |
The pure enrichment mistaire humidifier is a good option for those looking for a lower priced unit. It does away with a lot of the bells and whistles of some of the more premium models.
Another downside is the run time is only 7-10 hours. However this humidifier covers up to 175 sq. ft and has 2 different output levels. It also has a nightlight mode option, making it convenient for a bedroom.
| Type: | Ultrasonic |
| Capacity: | 320ml |
| Run Time: | 4-8 hours working |
A quiet, space saving design is what sets the Arpstar cool mist humidifier apart from other models. It’s similar to the budget option listed above, but has slightly more sq. foot coverage. Its great for small spaces where you don’t want to devote an entire area to a humidifier. The design is also sleek enough to blend in to other modern aesthetics without looking like a sore thumb in the room.
You’re still giving up some of the bells and whistles comparing this model to premium versions, but if space is your top priority this model is a good option.
| Type: | Ultrasonic |
| Capacity: | 755 square ft. |
| Run Time: | 12 – 40 hours |
If you’ve got a large room that you want to add humidity to, the elec homes is a good option to consider. This unit covers up to 755 square feet. It also has a sleep mode, and is noted as a quiet unit by many reviewers on Amazon. It has 3 levels of output and comes with a remote control for an easy settings change.
You’ll want to ensure you select a humidifier that has at least a 12 hour run time, meaning it can run for 12 hours without needing to be refilled. A 24 hour run time would be even better, which would mean you’ll only need to refill the humidifier once per day. The more often you need to refill, the more hassle the process is. Minimizing this step will keep it easy and low maintenance to keep up.
Contrary to what you might think, you actually don’t want your humidifier directly next to any of your plants. You want the humidifier to raise the overall humidity levels in the air, not to spray water directly on plants. We recommend placing your plant humidifier at least 6 feet away from your plants.
The size of the room you want to place your humidifier in is something to consider. When evaluating different plant humidifiers most pages will quote the square footage that the unit is effective for. Think of this as a radius around the unit that it will be effective for.
Its ok to place it in a room that is larger than the capacity (for plant purposes), but you dont want to place the humidifier on the other side of a large room when its capacity is only 200 square feet.
The frequency of which you’ll have to clean your humidifier will vary depending on if you put filtered water or tap water in your humidifier. Either is totally fine to use, but filtered will likely build up bacteria quicker than filtered water will.
At a minimum we recommend planning to clean your plant humidifier at least once a week. However, you may need to do it more frequently and its best to monitor for the first few weeks after your initial setup.
There are several other ways to raise humidity for your plants. They may not be quite as efficient, but if your plant only needs a slight change in humidity they might do the trick.
Especially if you’re using porous planters like terracotta, you can raise the humidity by placing your planter within another planter. Next, fill the empty space with moss and water the moss. This will keep moisture around the outside of the planter and raise the humidity for the plant inside.
Fill a container with small pebbles or gravel. Fill this container just below the tops of the pebbles with water, then place your plant on top of the bed of gravel. This will passively pull water up into the plant. This will slightly raise the humidity, but will not drastically change the humidity levels. if you need a drastic change, a plant humidifier is a better method.
Want to read more about indoor plant and container gardening tips? Check out our container gardening section of the blog!
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One of the biggest negatives to hydroponic gardening is the upfront cost to purchase a system and your seeds or pods. This begs the question – is a hydroponic garden cost effective? How long will it take for you to get a return on your initial investment?
Today, we’re covering a cost analysis of hydroponic gardening, and if it can save you money in the long run.
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For this exercise, we’re making a few assumptions that you might need to tweak or change based on your personal situation. We’ve tried to use a standard price for each item, or what could be considered “average” in each category. However, with hydroponic systems, there’s a wide range of costs that you can pay.
You can easily take a cheaper or more expensive route than we have in these scenarios. If you feel discouraged by the initial price – know that you have plenty of options to tweak as needed. For more options on different grow systems available – check out our guide on The Best Hydroponic Grow Systems for Beginners.
Don’t worry though we’ll include links for each item should you want to purchase or reference these items for your own cost analysis!
We selected the Aerogarden Indoor System for this analysis because this unit is a mid-range system in terms of price. You can purchase this unit for right around $260 on Amazon (as of 1/4/2020).
This is by no means the cheapest system out there, so don’t get discouraged if you can’t afford it. However high quality hydroponic grow systems can range from $100 to upwards of $500, it all depends on what features and sizes you want. For our purposes, we wanted something mid-range to estimate as fairly as possible.
Keeping with the Aerogarden theme, for estimating costs for seed pods we’re using an Aerogarden Salsa kit. This pod is priced at $17.95 currently and comes with a mix of tomatoes and peppers.
For this exercise we’re estimating that in a year the average user will go through 3 pod packs per year (meaning you’ll re-plant every 4 months). Many reviewers of hydroponic systems report much longer grow seasons so this estimate is probably above what you’ll actually need.
We’re breaking it down into two separate scenarios, so you can see how quickly you’ll break even from your initial investment (i.e. buying the hydroponic grow system and your 3 packs of seed pods).
In scenario 1 – we’re assuming that you use a packet of herbs and a carton of tomatoes weekly.
As mentioned earlier, we’re assuming you’re purchasing a $260 Aerogarden unit and 3 seed pod packs per year. This makes your total investment for 1 year $313.85.
| Expense | Amount |
| System | $ 260.00 |
| Pods – 1 pack at $17.95 | $ 53.85 |
| Total Spent | $ 313.85 |
We’re using a rough estimate of $3.99 for a pack of fresh herbs (thinking basil, thyme, etc., whatever you use most of!). We’re also assuming $4.99 for a carton of tomatoes. Obviously there’s some room for variance here, you can sub out the numbers for whatever your local supermarket offers.
Assuming a pack of herbs and a carton of tomatoes is NOT bought, because you’re growing them from your Aerogarden, you’ll save a total of $466.96.
| Produce | Cost of Produce | Frequency | Amount |
| Herbs | $ 3.99 | x 52 weeks | $ 207.48 |
| Tomatoes | $ 4.99 | x 52 weeks | $ 259.48 |
| Total Saved | $ 466.96 |
| Total Spent | $ 313.85 |
| Total Saved | $ 466.96 |
| Difference | $ 153.11 |
In scenario 1, assuming that you use 1 carton of tomatoes consistently per week and 1 packet of fresh herbs, you’ll more than cover your costs within the first year. In fact – you’ll end up saving roughly $153.11!
The Aerogarden model we’re using in this analysis has space for 9 seed pods, so you could easily grow more than just 2 types of plants. However, keep in mind some varieties (particularly vegetables) take up extra room. This means that you may not be able to fill all 9 pods with tomato plants.
This scenario is great for those that eat a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. However, if you know you wont need that much fresh produce and herbs, check out scenario 2!
In scenario 2 our upfront costs are the same as scenario 1. You’re initial investment is $260 for the unit and $53.85 for the seed pods.
| Expense | Amount |
| System | $ 260.00 |
| Pods – 1 pack at $17.95 | $ 53.85 |
| Total Spent | $ 313.85 |
For this scenario, we’re assuming that you’ll consume produce and herbs at half the rate as scenario 1. This means that every other week you’ll be purchasing a pack of herbs and tomatoes. This is noted in the frequency column at 26 weeks per year to calculate the total savings.
In Scenario 2 our produce savings comes out to $233.48.
| Produce | Cost of Produce | Frequency | Amount |
| Herbs | 3.99 | x 26 weeks | $ 103.74 |
| Tomatoes | 4.99 | x 26 weeks | $ 129.74 |
| Total Saved | $ 233.48 |
| Total Spent | $ 313.85 |
| Total Saved | $ 233.48 |
| Difference | $ (80.37) |
As you can see, in this scenario you do not break even from your initial investment. By the end of the year you’d still be down $80.37 compared to what you had to invest.
That being said, you still have the unit at the end of year 1 and can of course keep utilizing it the following year, where you’d break even very quickly.
So – tying it back to our original question – is a hydroponic garden cost effective? It depends on how much produce and fresh herbs you’ll use, and how quickly you need a return on your initial investment.
As we mentioned, there’s definitely multiple ways to this differently. Our goal of this exercise was just to show a couple of scenarios that allow you to assess if a hydroponic grow system could be a good investment for you.
For more information on hydroponic grow systems, check out our Buyer’s guide to hydroponic grow systems for beginners! Or, check out our latest article on how a hydroponic system works.
We talk a lot about grow lights here at Fig & Spruce. The number one question that new gardeners in regards to using grow lights is – how long should grow lights be left on? Don’t worry! We’re here to answer this question and more!…
We’re offering our free guide on growing your own herb garden. This 26 page guide covers how to care for your favorite herbs, including basil, chives, rosemary, and more!
