Being in control of your garden can be challenging. Outdoor growing is subject to the elements and changing weather patterns. Extreme weather can wreak havoc on your plants; protecting them can sometimes be impossible. When growing indoors, you are ultimately in complete control. Or at least you should be.
Things can go wrong, even when you have all the equipment running like clockwork. I recently bumped into my timer and added 30 minutes of light to my night cycle. Luckily, I have equipment that measures and logs data such as temperature, humidity, VPD, and light levels. I could see the blip of light on when it shouldn’t have been. I might have never caught it if it wasn’t for my NIWA controller. I also use AirComfort, a similar product that measures and logs the same data. These two products are affordable and easily integrated, allowing you to know what is happening in your room and send a notification if something is off.
Indoor growers rely on technology to help them create the perfect environment. Adam Clarke, our HVAC guru, gives his take on VPD in Psychometrics, Vapor Pressure and the Seemingly Never-Ending Chase for your Setpoint. Rich Hamilton breaks down the best temperatures for each stage of a plant’s life in The Importance of Temperature Control. If you are new to LEDs or still trying to figure out what environmental and nutritional needs your garden has compared to HPS, check out LED to Stress by Everest Fernandez.
While many extra factors come into play when growing outdoors, a couple of our writers have taken the bull by the horns to ensure their gardens make it to harvest. In The Benefits of Using Shade Cloth on Yield and Quality of Vegetable Harvests, Anne Gibson writes about protecting her plants from the blistering heat. In Passive Solar Geothermal Greenhouse at the 45th Parallel, Marci Babineau explains how her backyard venture has led to better self-sustainability throughout a cold Canadian winter.
If your grow room requires a technical upgrade, why wait? Visit your local hydro shop and get that new LED, controller, pH meter, and silica. You may pick up some pointers from experienced gardeners at the same time!
Happy Gardening