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        <title>Hydroponics Today</title>
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    <outline type="rss"  title="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;May26, 2008&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;High prices at the pump and the produce aisle have sent home  gardeners into their yards with a mission: Grow-it-yourself dining.  Sales of vegetable seeds, tomato transplants and fruit trees are  soaring as enterprising planters grow their own food.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;W. Atlee Burpee &amp;amp;amp; Co., the nation's largest seed company, has  sold twice as many seeds this year as it did last year, with half the  increase from new customers, the company's president, George Ball,  estimates.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;When we saw the gas prices go up, we said, 'Oh boy,' &amp;amp;quot; Ball said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Interest  in growing fruits and vegetables picks up during economic downturns,  people in the industry say. Seed companies say a dime spent on seeds  yields about $1 worth of produce.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Bad economic times can also  mean more time to garden -- people who cancel their summer vacations  are around to water their tomatoes. The housing crunch also works in  favor of vegetable gardens: If you can't sell your home, you can  replant it.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;When a bag of six red and yellow peppers went from $4  to $7 at area markets, David Wasler of Palm Bay figured it was time to  start planting.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;And most of the ones they are getting are imports,&amp;amp;quot; Wasler, 62, said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;The  information technology worker, raised on a Pennsylvania farm, already  had been working on developing hydroponic organic farming techniques  when that produce sticker shock got him planting peppers, yellow  tomatoes -- coming in now -- and dragon fruit.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Yes, there were  costs associated with his plantings, including replacing sand with  nutrient-rich soil, but Wasler took an economist's approach to his  financial outlay.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;Costs the first year are somewhat high, but look at the growing season,&amp;amp;quot; he said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;So  if you amortize that over the year, it reduces the cost. Going into the  second year, you don't have to build that (soil) up.&amp;amp;quot;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;That kind of thinking is leading to a big year for companies that sell to fruit and vegetable gardeners.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Linda  Grover, who owns Sun Harbor Nursery in Indian Harbour Beach with her  husband, Dave, said she has seen an increase in people who want to grow  their own produce.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;It's been like this for several months. It's really a trend,&amp;amp;quot; Grover said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;For  a variety of reasons people want to plant. They want to control the  quality of what they eat and they can make sure it's organic. Also  there's a nostalgia thing involved where people are growing to show  their kids what they used to do with their own parents.&amp;amp;quot;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Among the most popular items: The EarthBox, a self-contained soil system popular with time-pressed gardeners.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Grover has tomatoes growing in one at her shop and says the better-than-average yield is timely given the economy.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;My  customers who aren't growing their vegetables in the EarthBox have a  lot of problems with the plants because here in Florida we get a lot of  fungi, bugs, worms and end-rot,&amp;amp;quot; she said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;New vegetable gardeners are packing classes from Maine to California.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080526/BUSINESS/805260313&amp;quot; target=&amp;quot;_blank&amp;quot;&amp;gt;read more&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; ...&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;" text="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;May26, 2008&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;High prices at the pump and the produce aisle have sent home  gardeners into their yards with a mission: Grow-it-yourself dining.  Sales of vegetable seeds, tomato transplants and fruit trees are  soaring as enterprising planters grow their own food.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;W. Atlee Burpee &amp;amp;amp; Co., the nation's largest seed company, has  sold twice as many seeds this year as it did last year, with half the  increase from new customers, the company's president, George Ball,  estimates.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;When we saw the gas prices go up, we said, 'Oh boy,' &amp;amp;quot; Ball said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Interest  in growing fruits and vegetables picks up during economic downturns,  people in the industry say. Seed companies say a dime spent on seeds  yields about $1 worth of produce.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Bad economic times can also  mean more time to garden -- people who cancel their summer vacations  are around to water their tomatoes. The housing crunch also works in  favor of vegetable gardens: If you can't sell your home, you can  replant it.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;When a bag of six red and yellow peppers went from $4  to $7 at area markets, David Wasler of Palm Bay figured it was time to  start planting.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;And most of the ones they are getting are imports,&amp;amp;quot; Wasler, 62, said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;The  information technology worker, raised on a Pennsylvania farm, already  had been working on developing hydroponic organic farming techniques  when that produce sticker shock got him planting peppers, yellow  tomatoes -- coming in now -- and dragon fruit.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Yes, there were  costs associated with his plantings, including replacing sand with  nutrient-rich soil, but Wasler took an economist's approach to his  financial outlay.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;Costs the first year are somewhat high, but look at the growing season,&amp;amp;quot; he said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;So  if you amortize that over the year, it reduces the cost. Going into the  second year, you don't have to build that (soil) up.&amp;amp;quot;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;That kind of thinking is leading to a big year for companies that sell to fruit and vegetable gardeners.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Linda  Grover, who owns Sun Harbor Nursery in Indian Harbour Beach with her  husband, Dave, said she has seen an increase in people who want to grow  their own produce.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;It's been like this for several months. It's really a trend,&amp;amp;quot; Grover said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;For  a variety of reasons people want to plant. They want to control the  quality of what they eat and they can make sure it's organic. Also  there's a nostalgia thing involved where people are growing to show  their kids what they used to do with their own parents.&amp;amp;quot;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Among the most popular items: The EarthBox, a self-contained soil system popular with time-pressed gardeners.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Grover has tomatoes growing in one at her shop and says the better-than-average yield is timely given the economy.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;quot;My  customers who aren't growing their vegetables in the EarthBox have a  lot of problems with the plants because here in Florida we get a lot of  fungi, bugs, worms and end-rot,&amp;amp;quot; she said.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;New vegetable gardeners are packing classes from Maine to California.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080526/BUSINESS/805260313&amp;quot; target=&amp;quot;_blank&amp;quot;&amp;gt;read more&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; ...&amp;amp;nbsp;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;" url="http://www.hydroponics-today.com/veggies-too-pricey-grow-a7.html"/>
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