basil failure

[tmcolombo]

I bought a new Bounty Basic and planted a 9-pod pack of Pesto Basil pods on November 8.  One pod has sprouted and is growing nicely.  The rest show no signs of life.  I know it says "sprouts in 6-12 days" but based on several years of growing basil in my Ultra units, this is not looking good.  Aerogarden is telling me I have to wait 21 days before they'll send replacement seed pods, despite the "6-12 days" printed on the pods themselves.

So, my question is, should I plan to try anything different when I plant replacement pods?  The lights in this LED planter are so much higher than the ones on my Ultra units were, and there's no way to adjust them lower so they're closer to the seed pods.  Do the LED lights not need to be as close?  Or should I try to find a way to raise the whole thing up from below?

This is so disappointing and I'm wishing I had just stuck with the Ultra units.  But it looks like they're phasing out the light bulbs for those so I decided to invest the bulb money in the Bounty.  I hope I don't end up having this same experience year after year.

[scarfguy]

I've had no problems growing the AG Genovese Basil in the Bounty Basic.  The Basic does only have a 30W LED light and is probably one of the lesser light output of any of the AG models.  It has served me well, however, for herbs, lettuce, and cherry tomatoes. For more intense light, I remove the light hood and replace it with the AG 45W light panel hanging above the grow deck.

If you are using the clear plastic humidity covers, try removing a couple and see if that stimulated the germination.

[Shawn]

That is odd for basil not to germinate.  I have found that is one of the easiest.  I have grown basil in everything from the sprout to Ultra to Farms. 

I have no clue.

[pfunnyjoy]

Basil usually is pretty easy. I shouldn't think it was the model of Aerogarden though. 30W ought to be enough, as people grow basil in lesser lit models. Even the 10W Sprout.

Honestly, I'd be more inclined to suspect you got a bad batch of seed pods from Aerogarden.

I've had mixed results with AG seed pod kits. The Harvest Elite Slim I bought recently had 2 lettuce pods out of 6 fail to germinate. Once, I had an entire seed pot kit of bush beans develop mold. And yet, the same garden, when planted with my own green bean seeds, did wonderfully.

[tdse]

Nov 17, 2023 13:07:25 GMT -5 pfunnyjoy said:

Basil usually is pretty easy. I shouldn't think it was the model of Aerogarden though. 30W ought to be enough, as people grow basil in lesser lit models. Even the 10W Sprout.

Honestly, I'd be more inclined to suspect you got a bad batch of seed pods from Aerogarden.

I've had mixed results with AG seed pod kits. The Harvest Elite Slim I bought recently had 2 lettuce pods out of 6 fail to germinate. Once, I had an entire seed pot kit of bush beans develop mold. And yet, the same garden, when planted with my own green bean seeds, did wonderfully.

I agree with this wholeheartedly.  There should be zero issues with growing basil in a bounty basic.  

I will say that I have had several issues with AG pods lately.  I recently planted some herbs and 2 out of 9 sprouted (well past the 21 day mark).   

I find it annoying to have to reach out the AG (and am too impatient to wait for them to send new pods), so I typically just add some of my own seeds to the pod that didn't sprout.   I probably should reach out to AG, since I'm essentially letting them "off the hook", so to speak.

[scarfguy]

I haven't used the AG seeds for some time now due to poor performance.  I just buy my own seeds from merchants that have proven to provide me with quality seeds.  The only AG pods I still buy is their Cascading Petunias.

[lynnee]

tmcolombo, I think that the lights are higher in the Bounty than in the Ultra because the Bounty has a stronger light. I love the stronger lights because things grow faster, but the lights can scald the leaves on some plants.

My AG seed kits usually germinate if I'm patient, even when they are a year past the "sell by" date. However, I agree with the others that you probably got a bad basil seed pack.

Sometimes the seeds fall out of the pods in transit--did you notice seeds in the bottom of the box when you opened it? Just curious. This doesn't matter, since you have to wait to get a replacement pack.

[tmcolombo]

It's Day 12 and still only one pod has sprouted.  I've contacted Aerogarden and they keep giving me the "you have to wait 21 days per our policy" reply.  Never mind that the seed pods say they're supposed to sprout within 6-12 days.

I really do think this might be a bad batch of seed pods, but Aerogarden hasn't confirmed that.  They did ask for the model number of my garden and the lot number shown on top of each seed pod (they're all the same).  

So, I guess I'll have to wait till Nov. 29 and contact them AGAIN.  

[tmcolombo]

I still have the box the seed pods came in and there are no stray seeds floating around in there.

[pfunnyjoy]

Nov 20, 2023 14:53:40 GMT -5 tmcolombo said:

It's Day 12 and still only one pod has sprouted.  I've contacted Aerogarden and they keep giving me the "you have to wait 21 days per our policy" reply.  Never mind that the seed pods say they're supposed to sprout within 6-12 days.

I really do think this might be a bad batch of seed pods, but Aerogarden hasn't confirmed that.  They did ask for the model number of my garden and the lot number shown on top of each seed pod (they're all the same).  

So, I guess I'll have to wait till Nov. 29 and contact them AGAIN.  

That's so annoying. By the time you can get a replacement, the rest of the garden is too far ahead and the seeds can't catch up as easily. 

Don't let it discourage you though, it's easy to do your own seeds and far more cost effective. Once your pods are confirmed not to sprout, you can pull seeds out of them, boil the sponges, sanitize the grow baskets and you are set to go. You can use foil with a hole poked in if necessary to cover the basket. 

I like doing my own seeds, because if something doesn't look like it's sprouting, I can just drop another seed or two in immediately.

When my new Harvest Elite Slim arrived from Woot, I was so annoyed, because it didn't have a seed kit AT ALL! Supposedly one has been shipped out as a replacement, but I was so impatient to get going, I bought some grow baskets on Amazon, because my old ones didn't fit well. Patience is not my strong suit!