Grow with confidence! We have a few tips to help you successfully sprout your new yCubes on your Gardyn in the video below.
1. Get your Gardyn ready for yCubes
- When starting your Gardyn for the first time, make sure you've completed all of the necessary assembly steps. These include filling your Gardyn water tank with fresh water only, and no plant food.
- You can test your water system by tapping the Water button on your Gardyn app. When it says "ON" that means your Gardyn is running a watering cycle. If it's working properly, you should see water flowing through the columns and into every yPod.
2. Place your yCubes in your Gardyn
- Now that your Gardyn is ready to go, you can add your yCubes!
We have a yCubes Placement Guide in the Gardyn Basics section of the app that can help you decide the best spot for every plant. - When inserting the yCubes, be sure to push them into the yPod fully. It is important that you avoid touching the rockwool as compressing it in any way will make it harder for the delicate sprouts to push through the surface. At first, the dry rockwool will appear light green. When a scheduled watering occurs, you should notice a change in the rockwool's color from light green to dark green as it saturates with water.
3. Key germination tips:
Now that everything is ready for your seeds to germinate, here are 4 important things you should know for optimizing your germination success.
#1: Don't add plant food to your water tank until true leaves emerge.
Seeds contain all the nutrients they need to sprout their first few leaves. Adding plant food too early will overwhelm the seeds and prevent them from germinating. Kelby will help guide you around day 10 to determine whether it's time to add plant food based on the growth of your plants.
#2: Don’t use yCovers while sprouts are still germinating
yCovers will lock in moisture and inhibit germination. It is important that you wait until after you see true leaves and have thinned your sprouts before adding a yCover.
#3: Keep the pre-set watering schedule and ensure 14-16 hours of light on boost mode
The rockwool growing medium in the yCubes is very absorbent and doesn't require as much water as soil to germinate seeds. Keep your watering schedule on the pre-set mode to ensure your seeds get just enough water, not too much or too little.
If you would like to change your lighting schedule to suit your lifestyle, make sure your Gardyn gets between 14 to 16 hours of light. A smiley face in the Light Schedule on your app will let you know if your plants are getting enough light.
#4: Periodically check the temperature and humidity level of the room in which your Gardyn is located
Seeds germinate most quickly in temperatures in the 70s Fahrenheit, with humidity between 65-75%.
4. Play the waiting game until true leaves emerge...patience is a virtue!
Now we play the waiting game until the majority of the yCubes on your Gardyn are showing true leaves. This usually happens around day 10 of your plants' journey, but it can take up to 6 weeks depending on the varieties and your home's unique environmental factors.
When the yCubes sprout, the first set of leaves you will see are called the cotyledons. These are embryo leaves that won't necessarily resemble what the plant will look like later.
After the cotyledons develop, the second set of leaves to appear will be the true leaves. These are a small form of the plant's real leaf shape. Once you see true leaves, it means the seed has used up all of its available nutrients, and will need plant food to continue growing.
5. Separate unsprouted yCubes and yCubes with cotyledons (first leaves) from yCubes with true leaves.
You can move any yCubes or plants with cotyledons to a Gardyn Nursery or covered tray until they show true leaves.
6. Once you only have sprouted yCubes left on your Gardyn, you can move to the next steps of your plants' journey, and:
- Thin your sprouts.
- Add plant food to your Gardyn.
- Add yCovers to prevent algae and ensure you keep a healthy environment for your plants.
So that's it! Before you know it, you'll have full, healthy plants you can snack on daily. If you are a member, Kelby will guide you every step of the way.
Questions? We'll be happy to help you by email support@mygardyn.com or chat with us!