Starting Your Tower
Once your seeds have germinated, you’ll soon be ready to transfer the seedlings into your tower. This is a really exciting time because it’s like watching your kids start kindergarten. You’ve babied and nurtured them up to this point and now it’s time to let them grow! Things get a lot easier at this stage. Once your seedlings are transferred the automated watering and lighting takes over. At this point there’s nothing much to do than keep an eye on your water levels and make sure your nutrient and pH levels stay within range. And of course, watching your plants grow bigger and bigger is really satisfying to see.
There are many benefits to starting and growing a tower garden. All the benefits you read about BEFORE purchasing your tower make a lot of sense – growing organic food without chemicals and pesticides, recycling water for irrigation, faster grow times vs. soil, and how vertical gardens take a lot less space. All of this is true. But some benefits are hard to truly appreciate until AFTER you get your tower. Namely – how INCREDIBLE it is to have farm-fresh food at your fingertips. The aroma of freshly picked basil and adding it to your pasta sauce is an awesome feeling. Putting lettuce you've grown yourself, into your sandwiches. The satisfaction of growing your own food! And how much fun the entire process is. It's a really fun and enjoyable hobby.
We’re going to walk you through some steps to make sure you get the most out of your garden.
Getting your tower started is a pretty simple process. Assembly takes about 20 minutes. No tools are required since the parts snap together, and held in place by internal steel rods you'll tighten by hand. Let's get started!
Assembling Your Tower
What's in the Box
The ALTO Garden GX Tower arrives in one box. This makes your shipment easy to track online and easy to receive, since you don’t have to track multiple shipments. Inside the box you’ll find all tower components, the reservoir tank and wheels, broad spectrum LED lights with the built-in timer, the water pump, a timer for the water pump, net pots, and a water gauge so you can monitor water levels inside the reservoir tank.
We also include a free starter kit in the box with the following items:
You’ll find most of these items packed inside the reservoir tank – since we don’t ship water, it’s a great place to pack stuff! We take great care with our packing to make sure you receive everything intact and in good shape.
Once you get everything out of the box, lay things out on the floor. The included instruction manual has a list of contents on the first page, so check your contents so you know what each part is. Some items are really obvious – like the reservoir tank and the 6 tower layers. But there are also some smaller components as well so taking inventory of everything is a good first step.
Our instruction manual walks your through the assembly process, but it is 1,000 times easier to understand by watching the assembly video above!
Preparing the Reservoir
Step 1: Add Water. Add plain tap water to the reservoir tank, filling the reservoir until you almost reach the the top. Once you have water in your reservoir we can add the nutrients and pH solutions discussed below. Do not use softened water, or chlorinated water.
Step 2: Add Nutrients. There are many types of nutrients but we recommend a simple solution of Type A + B plant nutrients. Just do a search for “A + B Plant Nutrients” – this is all you need and it works great. Add the correct MLs per gallon according to the instructions on the label. Once the nutrients have been added, stir.
Step 3: Test and Adjust pH. Nutrients will fluctuate the pH a little bit, so it's best to test and adjust pH AFTER you’ve added your nutrients. pH should be between 5.5 – 6.5. But note that pH tends to drift upward over time, so try to get it closer to 5.5. If you leave it at 5.5 for example, it will probably drift towards 6.0 in a week or so.
pH is important because your plants can’t absorb the nutrients if the pH is out of range. If your pH is off, the nutrients in your tower garden won’t work. You can read our blog article on the importance of pH for more on this topic. Check your pH once or twice a week as part of maintaining your hydroponic garden.
pH solutions (both pH up and pH down) are powerful so just add a little bit at a time. Just a little bit of solution can make a big change. If you're at 7.5, bring it down gently with pH down. Add a little bit and re-test. Then add some more, re-test, and repeat until you’ve reached your desired levels. Don’t over-correct with pH down, and then use pH up to raise it again. Try to avoid adjusting pH in both directions.
Once you get a feel of your pH solution, you’ll be more comfortable knowing how much to use. But until then, use it very gradually.
Transferring Seedlings
Transferring seedlings into your tower is a simple process. Seedlings are ready to be transferred when you see a combination of the following signs:
• Four leaves have formed (the best sign) – the first two leaves you see from your seedling are called cotyledons, which are parts of the seed embryo. Wait until you see two more leaves form on your seedling (four “leaves” total).
• Roots are growing out from the bottom of the rockwool – when you can see roots coming out of the rockwool cubes this is another sign. Roots usually grow out the bottom of the cube, as they search for water at the bottom of your germination tray.
• Seedlings reach 1 – 2 inches tall – by the time they reach this height, four leaves have usually formed and they are probably ready to be transferred.
Transferring seedlings is really easy:
Step 1: Remove any extra seedlings (if applicable). Generally, rockwool cubes can support only one-full grown plant at a time. If you planted extra seeds during germination for redundancy reasons, now is the time to remove them before transferring into your tower.
Step 2: Insert the seedling into net pot. Pick up your seedling and insert the rockwool cube into the net pot. Be gentle with the seedling; grab a hold of the rockwool and not the plant.
Step 3: Push the rockwool cube all the way down. Use your finger and push the rockwool cube all the way down, making sure it’s touching the bottom of the net pot. This ensures the rockwool cube will get enough water; if the cube isn't inserted all the way it may not get watered evenly.
Step 4: Insert the net pot into your tower. Drop your net pot into an open slot in your tower. Repeat this process until all of your seedlings are transferred.
Set Timers
Timer for Lighting
Step 1: Set current time. Turn the dial clockwise and the hands of the clock will move. Keep turning until the current time is set.
Step 2: Adjust black pins around the dial. The timer is set by adjusting the black pins around the dial. Each pin represents 15 minutes of lighting time.
• Pins set to the outside indicate ON times
• Pins set to the inside indicate OFF times
Step 3: Set the timer mode. Set the small white switch towards the bottom of the dial. There are three modes:
• Timer mode (automatic)
• Manual ON
• Manual OFF
Timer for Watering
Step 1: Set current time. Set the time by turning the dial clockwise, until the black arrow points at the current time.
Step 2: Adjust black pins around the dial. The timer is set by adjusting the black pins around the dial. Each pin represents 15 minutes of watering time.
• Pins pressed down down/out indicate ON times
• Pins kept flush against the dial indicate OFF times
Step 3: Set the timer mode. Set the red switch on the side of the timer. There are two modes:
• Timer mode (automatic)
• Manual ON
About Lighting and Watering Schedules
Lighting Schedule
Setting your lighting schedule is pretty straight forward. A good starting point for lighting your tower garden is 14 hours on and 10 hours off. Set this schedule to start and adjust from there. Don’t leave your lights on 24 hours a day, since it is important for your plants have a dark cycle. Just like humans, plants need their rest too!
Watering Schedule
With hydroponic towers you set your watering schedule as a watering interval. Meaning you don't water continuously for 24 hours. Instead, watering is set for on-and-off periods. Using interval-based watering is a hydroponic method known as “aeroponics.” With aeroponics your plant roots are exposed longer to air than they are to water, throughout the course of the day! Having your roots suspended in air makes oxygen more accessible which accelerates plant growth. This is different than other hydroponic growing methods, which may leave roots submerged underwater 24 hours for example.
Your watering interval will largely depend on whether you’re growing indoors or outdoors, and the temperature. Below are some recommended guidelines, but you’ll need to exercise your judgement as well and adjust as needed.
Some example watering intervals:
| Indoor Cool | Indoor Warm | Outdoor Fall / Spring | Outdoor Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 minutes on | 15 minutes on | 15 minutes on | 15 minutes on |
| 60 minutes off | 45 minutes off | 45 minutes off | 30 minutes off |
| 14 - 18 hours a day | 16 - 20 hours a day | 18 - 22 hours a day | 20 - 24 hours a day |
Maintaining pH, Water and Nutrient Levels
By now you have your reservoir filled with nutrient-rich, pH balanced water. You’ve transferred seedlings into your tower and the timers are all set. Congratulations! Your plants are ready to grow and thrive. It’s a lot of fun watching your plants grow bigger and bigger every day.
While most of your time now will be spent on watching your plants grow, it’s still important to maintain pH, water and nutrient levels in your reservoir.
Maintaining pH Levels
pH levels in your reservoir don't stay the same and will change over time. As water recycles up and down your tower pH will usually drift upward. It's important to test your pH Levels 1 - 2x a week to make sure they haven't drifted out of range. Having a pH test pen makes it easy to test your pH levels through the observation window at the reservoir base.
Maintaining Water and Nutrient Levels
Water evaporates. The warmer it is the faster it evaporates. So it’s very important to keep an eye on your water levels because without water your plants will die. Make sure there’s always enough water in the reservoir for the water pump to circulate water up and down the tower.
At minimum – your water should be 1/4 to 1/3 full. Let’s say 1/3 full to be safe. This will ensure your water pump is completely submerged under the water level so it operates smoothly.
When it’s time to refill, we like to use a separate bucket. We pre-treat the water with A + B nutrients and adjust pH, prior to adding to the reservoir. Fill your bucket with the necessary amount of water and add your nutrients. Then test and adjust pH as needed. Once you have your water prepared with nutrients and it's pH balanced, add it to your reservoir.
Since the pH of the existing water may not match the pH of the new water you'll be adding, we suggest re-testing pH once the water has been mixed together. This ensures the newly mixed water in your reservoir has the appropriate pH between 5.5 – 6.5.
Note we do not add nutrients to the existing water. We only add nutrients to the water we’ll be adding. This is the best way to keep the correct nutrient levels in your reservoir.
Harvesting
In a few weeks time, your tower garden will be ready for harvest. There are three main methods of harvesting your hydroponic tower garden:
Cut-and-Come-Again (Recommended)
With the “cut-and-come-again” method, you harvest the outer-bottom parts of the plant, and leave the rest of the plant to continue growing. Simply grab the base of the leaf or stem, and give it a twist with your fingers. This technique will detach the leaf or stem from the rest of the plant.
This method allows you to continually harvest the same plant throughout the season. New leaves will appear and grow, so you can come back and harvest again. This is our favorite harvesting method and the one we most recommend. It yields the most food over the long-run.
Cut The Entire Plant at its Base
For this method, you will need a knife. Bunch all of the leaves together with your hand, and with your other hand use a knife to cut across the bottom of the leaves. Make sure to keep 2 – 3 inches of leaves at the bottom of the plant. The key to this method is cutting across the bottom of the leaves (not the stem), keeping the bottoms intact so they grow back.
Although the leaves will grow back, the volume will be much lower the second time you come around. But the advantage of this method is that it’s fast, and you’ll have more food right away.
Pull the Entire Plant from the Tower
This is another fast method of harvesting. For this method, simply pull the entire plant from the tower. You can remove the rockwool cube by cutting it off. Prepare the rest of the plant for your meal.
Of course - the disadvantage of this method, is you are harvesting the whole plant so there's nothing to grow back. But if you time your germination cycles right, you can replace your plant with a new seedling which will be ready to be harvested in a few weeks.
