After 10 weeks of growing in my AeroGarden Farm Plus, I harvested my first jalapeno pepper! Now, I have 5 jalapeno peppers, 4 bell peppers, 3 Manitoba tomato, and 1 purple super hot!
Ten weeks in, and the Farm Plus still hasn’t disappointed.
Time to jump into this week’s maintenance details, more exciting changes to my fruits, and, of course, comparison photos to blow your mind.
AeroGarden Farm Plus Garden 3 Week 10 Overview
There have been so many changes since my AeroGarden Farm Plus Week 9 update.
My catnip has finally sprouted and a lot! I had to replant my cumin. And I got to pick my first pepper!
Aside from harvesting a lot of herbs in the left garden, including significantly cutting down the mint and Thai basil, today’s maintenance also involved a fair amount of pruning of the right garden. Today’s maintenance probably took 45 minutes to 1 hour for the left side, 30 minutes for the right side and 20 minutes preparing herbs for freezing.
Before we get to the walk through of each plant, here is a comparison of the condition of the Farm Plus last week after maintenance and this week before maintenance.
AeroGarden Farm Plus Garden 3 Week 10 Overview
While it is easy to see how much the herbs have grown since Week 9, it’s a little bit more difficult to tell how much the fruits of changed in the last week. Once we walk through my garden, it will become a lot more obvious just how much my fruits have changed in the last week.
AeroGarden Farm Plus Garden 3 Week 10 – Left Side Walk Through
At 10 weeks, this was the largest harvest in the herb side of my AeroGarden Farm Plus. I thought last week’s harvest was huge but it had nothing on this week.
I’m still harvesting from back to front, with some detours to be able to take better before and after pictures. But I will continue to go through each herb from back top left to bottom row right.
To begin, Week 9 left side after harvest compared to Week 10 left side before harvest.
Now, let’s walk through each herb on the left side of my Farm Plus.
Rosemary
The cloned rosemary is finally starting to grow up and not by teeny amounts.
Last week, my rosemary was 6.5 cm (almost 2.6 inches) tall. This week, it is 8 cm (3.14 inches tall–no joke, on Pi Day it was Pi). An interesting thing happened in the last week and I’m kicking myself for not taking a picture. On March 9, I had to remove a mint stem that was growing from on the mint’s roots. It reached all the way from the front of the garden to the back.
Sage
The sage still continues to do well, even with the Thai basil smothering it for the last few days. After last week’s harvest, the sage measured 21 cm (almost 8.2 inches). This week, before harvesting, it measured 30 cm (12 inches). After harvesting, the sage measured 17 cm (6.7 inches). I did my best to get it as low as possible so that I could lower the lights lower than I usually do to give the shorter plants a good chance to grow.
And here is a comparison of the sage last week after harvest vs this week before and after harvest.
Thai Basil
The Thai basil has become a bit of a problem, for lack of a better word. Last week, I broke the rule of thirds because it was getting unruly. This week, I had to do it again because it’s simply not letting other plants get the light they need. Not only is it not allowing other plants to get the light they needs, it’s not allowing its own new growth to get the necessary light.
After week 9 harvest, the Thai basil measured 23 cm (9 inches). Before this week’s harvest, it measured 30 cm (12 inches) before harvest. After the harvest, it measured 22 cm (9.7 inches).
Harvesting it was extremely daunting. It took somewhere between 20 – 30 minutes just to deal with all of the Thai basil. I cut off as much of the original herb as possible to allow a whole bunch of new growth to actually grow. I’ll be curious to see once this planting season is done in about 4 months if another Thai basil pod will produce a plant as massive as this one.
Above is a comparison of the Thai basil last week after harvest, this week before harvest and after harvest.
Oregano
I’m enjoying watching how the oregano grows, with a mix of thin spindly branches and leaves, and big thick and beefy ones. After last week’s harvest, the oregano measured 10 cm (4 inches). This week, before harvesting, it measured 18 cm (7.1 inches). That is the most it has grown in a week. This week after harvest, the oregano measured 12 cm (4.7 inches).
During this week’s harvest, I removed some of the carpet effect and cut down to chunky leaf sets.
Italian Parsley
There was very little change with the Italian parsley this week because the mint and the Thai basil were blocking its light. Hopefully, after this week’s major pruning to both, it will begin to grow again over the next week.
Last week after harvest, the Italian parsley measured, 6 cm (2.4 inches). This week, it measured 7 cm (2.6 inches). Because there wasn’t any major changes, there is no comparison photo this week.
Cilantro 1
This week, the first cilantro plant grew much taller but didn’t increase that much in bulkiness. Now that it’s been harvested for a third time, it should start to bulk out like the other cilantro plant. Last week, this cilantro plant measured 9 cm (3.5 inches) after harvesting. This week before harvest, it measured 20 cm (8 inches), yet again more than doubling its height in one week. After harvest, it measured 7 cm (2.6 inches).
And below is the comparison photo of last week after harvest, this week before and after harvest.
Cilantro 2
While the older second cilantro plant didn’t grow as tall in the last week as its neighbour, it nearly tripled its bulk in the last week and I got a very significant harvest from it.
After last week’s harvest, it measured 9.5 cm (3.7 inches). This week, before harvesting, the second cilantro plant measured 18 cm (7.1 inches). After this week’s harvest, it measured 8 cm (3.15 inches).
And here is the comparison shot of last week after harvest, this week before and after harvest.
Mint
Yet again, harvesting the mint was pretty daunting and time-consuming for the same reasons as the last few weeks. Yet again, I had to cut off entire stems. I also had to tie the base of the mint together with twist ties to keep it in its spot.
After Week 9 harvest, the mint measured 20 cm (7.9 inches). This week, before harvest it measured 26 cm (10.2 inches). After harvesting, it once again measured 20 cm (7.9 inches).
Catnip
I replanted the catnip last week and there are sprouts! Lots of them! Hopefully by next week’s update, the dome will be off!
Thyme
There is so much thyme! Harvesting it this week was a bit of a task because it was all tangled in a rat’s nest and tangled among other plants. But, both of us survived. I have to be extra careful when harvesting this herb because the stems are so thin.
Last week, after harvesting, the thyme measured 7 cm (2.76 inches). This week, before harvesting, it measured 10 cm (4 inches. After this week’s harvest, it measured 8 cm (3.15 inches).
And now the comparison shot!
Cumin
Rest In Peace, Cumin. You tried really hard to grow after such a rough start but your stem was just too weak. Hopefully, this next seeding will grow big and strong.
And here is what the the left side of the Farm Plus looked like before and after harvest.
Once again, every herb has their own space and mostly their own lighting. Below are some images of the harvest. This week, I also took a front view of the harvest pile so you can appreciate just how much Thai basil was harvested.
AeroGarden Farm Plus Garden 3 Week 10 – Right Side Walk Through
I got to harvest my first pepper today! Plus, there have been a lot of other exciting changes to my fruits.
Before we get to all the new fruits and more, just as a reminder, below is a comparison of the right side last week after pruning and this week before pruning.
It may not look it, but there was a significant prune pile when I was done with this week’s maintenance.
Manitoba Heirloom Tomatoes
The Manitoba tomato plant just keeps growing and growing! But now that it’s not as bush anymore, it’s much easier to find new tomatoes before they get to be a good size.
As a reminder, the Manitoba Heirloom were planted on January 11, 2019. Last week, after pruning, it measured 58 cm (22.6 inches). Here is a breakdown of its maintenance and changes in the last week:
- Tomato found March 13.
- This week, before and after pruning, the Manitoba tomato measured 63 cm (24.8 inches).
- Continue to pollinate every day after the lights turn on.
- Tomato found March 14.
- Pruned March 14.
- Tied a twist tie around the base to keep the canopy at a more centralized place under the lights.
This week, I continued to prune the Manitoba tomato plant as if its a tree: cutting off a few limbs that are getting really big and taking away resources from new growth. I know I’m behind updating the site’s FAQ with these instructions, but it will get done!.
And here are some comparison photos of the Manitoba tomato plant before and after pruning:
And here are some images of cute tomatoes, including iddy biddy baby ones. The right image is the first tomato found. The centre image is the second. And the right image is the third.
Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes
It’s still alive! And while it hasn’t grown in height — it’s still 5 cm (2 inches) — the branches and leaves are getting thicker.
I really wish I had another garden to transfer this to so it could do its thing.
Serrano Peppers
Another reminder about the Serrano peppers: Like the Manitoba tomatoes, this was planted on January 11, 2019.
I almost had a Serrano pepper break out of its flower this week, then it got blown off when the fan was pollinating :(.
Last week, the Serrano pepper measured 37 cm (14.8 foot). This is how the last week’s maintenance looked:
- Serrano pepper still measured 37 cm (14.8 inches) on March 14.
- Pruned March 14.
- Continue to pollinate every day when the lights turn on.
- Too many flowers to now count.
Maybe this week I’ll get a Serrano pepper that will survive the wind.
Below is a comparison of last week after pruning, and this week before and after pruning.
It’s difficult to tell how much I pruned but it was mostly yellowing leaves.
Sweet Bell Peppers
I now have four baby bell peppers! I would have had 5 if I didn’t accidentally cut one off today while pruning. Here is a summary of other changes and maintenance details:
- 1 bell pepper found March 9.
- 1 bell pepper found March 14.
- Pruned March 14.
- More flowers than can be counted
- Continue to pollinate daily after the lights turn on.
Last week, it measured 28.5 cm (11.2 inches). This week, it measured 27 cm (10.6 inches) after I pruned it. I forgot to take a before measurement.
So you can be blown away by how much the peppers have grown in the last week, here are some comparison photos. The top left image is the pepper that was found on March 9. Top centre-right is when I found my first pepper on March 3. Top right is the third bell pepper I found on March 4 on March 14. The bottom left and bottom centre-right are images from last week. And the remaining two images of those same peppers this week.
Below is a comparison photo of last week after pruning, and this week before and after pruning.
The bell peppers are growing at a slightly faster rate than their jalapeno cousins.
Jalapeno Peppers
This week, I got to pick my first jalapeno pepper!
There are no new jalapeno peppers, but another pepper should be ready to pick any day now.
The jalapeno pepper plant had few changes since last week, other than the peppers growing in size. Here is a breakdown:
- Continue to pollinate daily when the lights turn on.
- First pepper harvested March 14.
- Pruned March 14.
- Too many flowers to count, even with losing some during pruning.
Last week, the jalapeno pepper measured 28.5 cm ( 11.2 inches). This week, it measured 29.5 cm (11.5 inches). Below are some photos of the peppers this week.
And here is a comparison of the jalapeno pepper plant last week after pruning, and this week before and after pruning.
Red-Fire Chili
This week, I had to prune quite a bit off of the red-fire chili! There still aren’t any buds, but hopefully they will come any day now.
Last week, it measured 13.5 cm (5.3 inches). This week, the red-fire chili plant measured 13.5 cm (5.3 inches). I’m hoping that’s a sign that it’s about to produce something.
Purple Super Hot Peppers
The purple super hot was planted on January 11, while the majority of the garden was planted on January 3, 2019. Like the red-fire chili, it is a smaller pepper plant compared to its cousins.
This week, I found my first super-hot pepper and it was so cute and adorable! It was found on March 12. The pepper grew quite a bit between March 12 and March 14. Here is a comparison photo.
I continued to pollinate every day and during this week’s maintenance, I also pruned it.. Last week, the super hot measured measured 20 cm (7.9 inches). This week, it measured 22 cm (8.7 inches).
Above is a comparison photo of the purple super hot last week, today before pruning and today after pruning. Again, I didn’t need to prune a lot.
After I was was done pruning everything, the pile of leaves and branches was a fair size.
Because so much was covered and so much was pruned, below is an image of the right side before and after this week’s pruning session.
The top part of the image is the right side this week before pruning. The bottom is after. The before picture didn’t look like much needed to be done, but a fair amount was pruned.
Finally, below is an image of the entire garden before and after this week’s maintenance. Now every herb once again has its own light and so do the fruits.
My AeroGarden Farm Plus Garden 3 Week 10 Journal Update
This week has been super busy and I’ve barely had time to breathe. So, today’s gardening sessions and journalling session was just a very nice time to destress, breathe, and appreciate everything in my surroundings.
I’m also contemplated changing my journal layout for my AeroGarden Farm Plus to be of a bit of an adaption of a journal layout I created for one of my Patreon patrons. That layout will be up on the site tomorrow, but you can get it now when you become a patron.
You will find out next week if I make the switch or not!
So, that is all the exciting things!
Let me know if you have any questions! And if you’re brand new to my Farm Plus series, you can catch up here.
Until next time!
