Grow Your Own Vegetables at Home Hydroponically

Eating vegetables is good for you but growing your own at home is even better. Growing your own will not only change what is on your dinner table, it will change you.

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Our indoor system, at just a little under 1 month of growing.

Growing your own produce at home or having a vegetable garden is not a new concept at all. People have been gardening for the past 10,000 years, whether it is for consumption or simply for beautifying. Although the popularity of vegetable gardening at home has its peaks and valleys over time, as society becomes more health conscious, and the desire for fresh and locally grown foods grow, edible home gardens have become increasingly popular, more prevalently, hydroponically.

A friend from Singapore was visiting us in Houston and I had briefly mentioned how I've always wanted to have a hydroponic system and grow my own vegetables, since my last few and noncommittal attempts with soil gardening were unsuccessful. Truthfully, I did not research well enough to ensure I can have a thriving garden. I simply just potted some herbs and seedlings, watered them and expected them to just grow and produce something that I can harvest.

He told me that he has a few hydroponic systems in Singapore and has been very successful in growing various vegetables, with minimal effort. He showed me pictures of his systems & harvests, and I decided to take the plunge and get one too. We welcomed a little home project from Aerospring Hydroponics (10% discount promo code: MCAL10) a month ago and had since gotten a second unit. 

First of all, let me share with you why I wanted to grow my own vegetables and you might realize that you share the same sentiments too:

1. Fresh and Healthy
​Sure, supermarkets are well stocked with salad mixes and vegetables. But they have been harvested many days ago, gone through sorting, cleaning, packaging, cooling and storage. And not forgetting transportation from the supplier to the supermarket, the time it sits on the supermarket shelf before I pick it up and drive home with it, only to leave it in the refrigerator before consuming it a few days later. Growing my own ensures that I will have access to truly fresh vegetables when I need or want it. Vegetables are always tastiest and most nutritious at its fresh form.

2. Minimize Waste and Save Money
An average American household throws out hundreds of dollars' worth of food every year and we have absolutely been guilty of that. We have been so used to accessing food conveniently and have never ever thought about the hard work that comes from growing that particular food. It is much harder to waste food when you grow your own. Many vegetables can be partially harvested and continues to grow after you do. When you do not take vegetables and fruits for granted, you are more likely to preserve or use up your supply before they spoil.

3. Eco-Friendly
Compared to traditional soil grown crop production, the use of water is so much more efficient in hydroponics, up to 90% more. No chemical weed or pest control products are required to operate a hydroponic system. And you require less space to run one too. 

4. Get the Family Involved
It is a healthy and fun activity for the entire family. Together with our kids, we develop new skills and learn about science & nature from growing our own produce. It is also a great way to teach our kids the importance of utilizing whatever bounty nature has provided to its fullest and avoid waste. Growing our own foods together as family is meaningful and purposely, it nourishes our souls, making it such a great stress reliever.

Our outdoor system, at 2 weeks of growing

So why Aerospring Hydroponics? 

1. Quality
Aerospring Hydroponics is a Singapore based company that makes their systems with the highest quality components. All materials used are made of food grade virgin plastic and are rated to last up to 5 years. The Sicce Syncra Silent 1.5 pump includes a 3+2 year manufacturer's warranty and the grow lights (for indoor systems only) are estimated to last 70,000 hours under normal conditions. 

2. Design
The Aerospring Indoor System (10% discount promo code: MCAL10) is a unique, convertible, 2-in-1 system that allows you to grow year-round, inside and outside. We have an indoor system set up to grow indoors during the colder months. and we also have another indoor system, where we simply did not set up the tent and lights, to have it growing outdoors instead. With the Texas summer heat and hurricane prone weather we have here in Houston, we have the option to wheel the outdoor system indoors anytime we want.

Another available product, the  Aerospring Standard System (10% discount promo code: MCAL10), is an outdoor system, designed for urban, suburban and rural environments with 2 to 4 hours of daily direct sunlight.

3. Easy to Use
A compact and vertical design, it fits easily to any space and looks great doing so. Neatly packed in an approximately 70lb box (indoor system), it was fairly easy to assemble. It took my husband about 2 hours to put it together. Our kids (13 & 8 years old) helped assemble the system we have outdoors in under 2 hours. The systems also come with a wifi timer that automates irrigation (indoor & outdoor systems) and lighting (indoor system only), so there is one less thing to worry about.

A simple & quick routine every week only requires me checking the water's PH & EC levels and topping up the water tank, if necessary. A full system clean is recommended once a year.

4. After Sales Support
Aerospring is extremely responsive to customer requests. I have personally spoken with two of the owners (Thorben and Mark) over a Zoom call, and I cannot be more assured knowing that their relationship with the customer does not end after the sale. In fact, that is when an ongoing relationship is established. There is a private Facebook Group exclusively for Aerospring owners to share tips & pictures of their grow and ask questions. Anyone who might have a question, issue or problem, Nadine (who is another one of the owners) and/or any other experienced fellow Aerospring owners will be able to help you on that group. I have personally never needed to ask a question on that group because there is wealth of information on it already. I simply just had to type in my question on the group, and any past related post is there for my reference.

Harvested some lettuces for our salads.

Fresh herbs for cooking.

Hydroponics is an easy way for anyone to start growing their own produce at home, and it can be a project that the entire family can participate in. If you'd like to join us on this exciting journey, I am proud to be partnering with Aerospring to offer you an additional 10% discount. To take advantage of this offer, simply use the promo code MCAL10 on Aerospring's website.