Ahopegarden Indoor Garden Hydroponics Growing System Kit: 60 Pods Vertical Garden with LED Grow Light - Plant Germination Kit Aeroponic Veggie Flower Fruit Growth with Smart Socket & Pump System

So far it is going really well. It's day 3 and we see growth in multiple pods! I will update my post to share our progress. I will be honest and adjust my review if necessary, but we are feeling eager and confident. Being our first experience, we started with light research from multiple outlets like Amazon, Pinterest and YouTube, to determine if this experiment is practical for our busy lifestyle. After seeing so much success, we really relied on the products and reviews on Amazon. AHopeGarden offered a $30 coupon the day we were ready to purchase, and we were intrigued by the product. The thought was to start small, but.. we felt the 60 pod would work best for our family of five. Waiting for the product to arrive on Saturday was no simple task. We were so enthusiastic about creating nourishment as a family. Anytime we can get the teenagers/young adult children engaged is an epic win. Upon arrival, we commented on the strength and care for supportive packaging. We notice these details that set companies apart! The instructions were seamless, but my contractor husband thought of some adaptations to complete the set up. It was erect in under 30 minutes. The pieces fit together so well, and the construction is stable. Pump and lights work and adjust as they promise. The App allows you to turn the lights on and off, remotely. This is important depending on your light schedule and lifestyle. The separate pod pieces are high quality and visually appealing, with a sticker that reflects the led lights so beautifully. The wheels and sturdy handles make moving this hydro unit easy. Seriously, AHopeGarden set this kit up in a user friendly way that makes us feel confident! *we ordered seed kits from another company, labeled for hydroponic set ups, as well as pod set ups from a third company. I will honestly say, the products that arrived with our 60 pod AHopeGarden set up are superior in quality to the other companies. However, we are trying them all in the experiment, and not anticipating poor results from any of the products purchased. *updates to follow. We're doing our best to follow grow instructions as well as looking for helpful tips. Day 3 and our seeds are thriving. The lights are bright, but it can add to the decor aesthetic. This has been a rewarding experience so far!

I bought this system a little over a month ago and I’m really enjoying it. I initially had a problem with a part and the customer service was wonderful - VERY quick, no hassle, eager to help. At this point I have an awesome planter that looks like something out of Scandinavian Design and I’m so happy that I went with the company that backs their product, provides replacement parts and answers e-mails. It’s not the cheapest planter out there but you often get what you pay for… like a 2 year warranty, quality craftsmanship and timely support. For something this large (you don’t want to have to send it back), this is very important!! Life is not perfect and I can’t stress this enough. These people will take care of you. I own 5 other hydroponic setups. It’s a hobby as well as a way to grow inexpensive, healthy, fresh food. This planter is sweet. I only need to worry about water chemistry for one big tank and the lighting clearance and deck space is fairly massive. I can plant starters in every single pod or space them out with the intent to keep the plants in water for a longer time (or indefinitely). The physical pods/baskets are compatible with everything else I own, which is great. Sound is comparable to other hydroponic systems. The lighting is ultra lightweight and easy to move as plants grow. It’s not the most intense light and also, it will not burn your leaves (as has happened to me numerous times) - so follow the directions for placement and you’ll do great. I prefer lower light for longer timeframes than something that burns. I like that it’s not the “smartest” system and it requires some manual input, as smart stuff eventually breaks. The planter has great instructions for assembly and use, but it lacks much detail in the way of cleaning and maintenance. Thus far, I estimate my time cleaning this and performing water chemistry at approximately 1 hour every 3 weeks (it’ll get quicker as you go). Too me, this is a great trade off for such fresh produce. The tank should be cleaned with some regularity however, as a lapse in tank upkeep risks a large number of plants in this setup. I would like to see more information for beginners on how to clean the planter and prevent any problems. This is a wonderful planter than performs as expected. If you are ready to add something cool to your hydroponic arsenal, it’d strongly consider this option. I’m already growing my entire collection of fall seedlings for the garden!

I will update this review as I am able. I have not received anything for this review. I bought this unit with my own money. I am a devotee of chef David Leibovitz whose description of fraises de bois sounded so delicious, I had to try some. I knew I would need a lot of hydroponic space to do so, and this was one of the cheaper and better reviewed options. I set the unit up without too much trouble- I did find the font on the booklet to be rather small, but managed by using my phone’s camera to enlarge the images. The only issue I had with the setup was the light clips and bars, but once I figured out their proper placement everything went beautifully. As the AeroGarden and AHopeGarden planting baskets are interchangeable, I plan on using my AeroGardens to sprout seedling, and transplanting them to the AHopeGarden as needed. So far I have only put water in the unit and plugged everything in to ensure it all works. I’ve not planted it yet, but hope to update as I go. Update #1 Four days after planting the bottom unit, and I have sprouts! Eight types of lettuce, and two types of spinach. I have yet to finish stratifying my Alpine strawberry seeds, but plan to give the entire top unit over to them when they are ready. I ended up disassembling the whole garden, and placing it inside a three-shelf, rolling, wire shelving unit (Amazon Basics black). I covered the shelf with plastic liners, and cut out holes for the water intake pipe, and the drain hole. I bought 1” plastic hole plugs, and covered the four holes in the bottom unit that were left after removing the silver posts. (I also put one of the hole plugs over the post holder inside the bottom unit to prevent water from collecting inside). The plugs are easy to remove, so I am able to add water without sacrificing one of the grow-spaces. I bought 1/4” plastic hole plugs to cover all of the unused plant marker holes, and brighter white, grow-space covers that are nicer and offer better coverage than the ones that came with the HopeGarden. I also got a digital BN-Link interval timer that is set to run the water pump for five minutes every hour. Apparently the pump should run all the time. There’s a lot of conflicting information, so I settled on 5m every 60m for now. Lastly, I got some black and white Velcro cable ties to keep everything neat and nice looking. I did end up spending about $100 extra for everything, but now I have a more stable unit, whose lights are able to go up as high as I need to accommodate taller plants. UPDATE #2 (last update barring any problems with the garden in the future): I am still really happy with the HopeGarden. Almost every one of my seeds sprouted after I switched to the AG Grow Anything sponges. Only two out of sixty did not, which seems reasonable. The air stones (bubblers) I added, seem to be working well, and, as shown in my photos, I have an explosion of growth in my salad greens. If you don’t care about how it looks, and only want to grow greens or strawberries (nothing too tall), do not hesitate to buy this unit.

Caveat: I just bought this, but will update after a crop. I’ve owned 4 Farms, 3 Harvests, and a few other units. Been at this for a few years. For the sake of this review, I think it’s best to compare this with a combo of a Farm Plus & Farm Basic, as that’s about where it lands, capacity-wise. To be fair, I’m comparing this system with a combo that costs 3x more. So, vs the Farm System: Pros - about 1/3 the price, at this time (deals fluctuate) - love the single water reservoir shared across the whole system. With 2 Farms, you’re dealing with water chemistry and capacity across 4 reservoirs. That can be especially time-consuming when your plants have grown. - the white & wood may be better for some people - Some well-thought out touches (plant signs, pitchers, etc). While seeds aren’t included, everything else you’ll need is, including a lot of extras other products don’t provide - Quiet - the wheels are an especially nice touch - Easy water changes. Just pop- out the pump intake, and it empties the water for you. Cons - Not as we’ll built as the AeroGarden. Not saying it’s flimsy, but the AeroGarden is built like a tank - very little info about this system available - one reservoir may be a drawback for some, who like to stagger their plantings. For me, eliminating the hassle of dealing with 4 reservoirs is a huge plus - not as smart. No onboard computer or really useful app. You can control the lighting with your phone, but that’s about it. You’ll have to track feedings yourself. But again, water chemistry is easier, with one reservoir - flimsy lighting. I hate this! My dog has already knocked down lights twice, wagging her tail. I’m going to have to do something to attach these lights better. AeroGarden lights are much sturdier, and they’re motorized - single point of failure is one tiny pump for the entire system. I’m looking at adding a 2nd pump, for redundancy - only available in one size. You can’t mix and match, like the Farm system - fewer off the shelf add ons available. I’ll need to figure out how to make a trellis, for example, although I can buy one from AeroGarden, though at a hefty price. Do note that the pods are a standard size, so pods & extras for AeroGarden and other systems will work - it’s probably got 80% of the water volume and planting capacity of a Farm Plus & Basic combo Overall, this is a solid system, with a design and build quality above its price-class. It’s simple, but that has its advantages. It’s not as “Smart” as the Farm, but there are plenty of 3rd party planting apps to help with that. Sometimes,,Smart can fail. The computer died on one of my Farms, for example. This system is simple, but pretty well thought out. At 1/3 the price, I was intrigued, but only having to deal with one reservoir is what sold it for me. This is a solid system. Both AeroGarden and AHopegarden systems are great systems. Enjoy!

I was hoping to use this unit to grow some herbs indoors. The grow cart is well built and was easy to put together. However the smart plug to control the lights is garbage! I tried using both connection modes, home wifi on 2.4Gh and AP mode (connecting to the device’s own wifi) and still the app doesn’t find the plug. I am basically left with an expensive system were the one of the main part is not working at all. Very disappointing!!