cheap « The Cheap Vegetable Gardener

1 Gallon Milk carton upside down tomato planter

14.5 years ago cheap, peppers, tomato, upside down planter, water

I wanted to see if (how much) my yields varied by allowing more volume of dirt in my homemade tomato planter, so I made this variation with the same type and size “Husky Cherry” seedling I am using in my 2-liter planter version.

The build for this one is also very simple:

I started with an organic milk carton given it was already opaque, but if you have the non-organic variety you will want to paint or cover the outside with duct tape.
Next cut or drill a 1/2 inch hole on the bottom of the milk carton, this will be where the stem of the plant will fit through.
Cut four slits out from the center of the 1/2 inch hole to make it easier to insert the plant into the planter.
Insert plant through the bottom.
Fill with soil (mix of 1 part peat moss/coconut coir)
Finally drill a hole and feed though eyelet secured with a nut from the back side

Now here is where you can stop or you can go with the advanced auto-watering option.

Materials Needed:

20 ounce water bottle
plastic straw
sponge

Build Instructions:

Drill hole just large enough to barely be able to pull the straw through
Cut a 1 inch long piece of sponge just wide enough to be able to slip inside the straw.
Fill with water and screw on cap and insert into top of planter

As the dirt dries it will also dry out the sponge which will release water and repeat as necessary. This works in a very similar concept as a Aqua Globe you may have seen advertised on TV.

Tags: cheap, garden seeds, organic vegetables, outdoor plants, tomato plants, upside down tomato planter, vegetables

2-liter bottle upside down tomato planter

14.6 years ago cheap, peppers, tomato, upside down planter

Though my first attempt at an upside down tomato planter worked out great, I have a habit of forgetting to water the plants everyday. More commonly when we have decent rains when only the hanging tomato planters need to be watered. So this year I have modified my design a little to make this a little easier. As a bonus you can create this new version much quicker and minimal tools.

Materials required

Empty 2-liter bottle
Spray paint
Drill or hot nail
Chopstick or 1/4 in stick

Step 1 — Cut off bottom

There is a natural ridge at the bottom of the two liter bottle, simply cut at this ridge and remove the bottom.

Step 2 — Attach water reservoir

Take the removed bottom, flip it over, and insert it into the bottom of the bottle until flush with the top.

Step 3 — Drills Holes

First you need to drill a small hole in the bottom of the reservoir (the bottom you cut of) Use the smallest drill bit you have, this will reduce the water flow coming into the planter during rainfall and/or manual watering. With this reduced flow there should be much less soil loss during watering.

Second you need to drill two holes about 1/4 inch from the edge with a 1/4 inch drill bit. It is a little difficult to get enough pressure against the plastic to make this hole without causing the plastic to collapse. To take care of this place a small piece of wood on the floor and drill the holes from the inside.

Step 4 — Paint planter

You want to protect the roots from being exposed to direct sunlight so you need to cover the outside. This can be done with contact paper, duct tape (as I have done in the past) or for a fast cleaner look just quickly add a quick coat of spray paint to the outside. It is probably best to use paint that is made to adheres well to plastic, though in my case I had some nice multipurpose light green paint leftover from another project that with a few hard rains appears to be holding up well.
Step 5 — Secure with stick (chopstick) and fill with soil

Now add your plant (tomatoes and peppers are my favorites) to the bottom (previously the top) of the planter by carefully pushing the roots through the hole or alternatively you can the plant out from the inside. If your plant is too large to do this safely you may also cut a larger opening in the bottom, but I would recommend wrapping a sponge or coffee filter around the plant to assist in keeping the dirt in the planter.

Fill your planter with a mixture of 1 part perlite to 2 parts (potting mix, peat moss, coconut coir) with the top 1/2 inch being only (potting mix, peat moss, coconut coir) After a couple of waterings, this 1/2 inch layer will compact and restrict the water flow for a slower and more distributed watering.

Use the thinner end of your chopsticks to thread it through both holes and both sets of plastic, attach a piece of twine attached to bother ends, and hang wherever the plants can get some good full sunshine and you should have plenty of early tomatoes this summer.

Tags: cheap, coffee grounds, outdoor plants, pepper plants, tomato plants, upside down tomato planter, vegetables

Cheap Homemade Cold Frame

14.7 years ago cheap, cold season crops, outdoor seed starting

When we bought our house we found a screen door in the garage. Not wanting to have or install the screen door we tried many times to get rid of it without success.

Finally I decided to use the parts to create a cold frame. I did consider using the whole door and hinges as a cold frame but decided I could make something that looked a little better by taking it apart.

The construction was very simple, by taking measurements of the windows I made the box out of cedar with similar dimensions. Wanting to try out my new circular saw I decided to make the cuts at 45 degrees for a more finished look. Last I simply screwed the sides into a length of 2” by 2” I placed at each corner

I have two squares of glass and a screen of the same size so I should be able to switch these in/out to make sure I am not frying the plants when it is time to harden them from the nice warm garage.

Later I plan on making a more secure (from the wind) hinged top but wanted to see what I could create with a small budget and I could not resist the 3 pack of seedling trays which took a decent chunk of my budget from this project which was sponsored by my Lowes Gift card winning from Rob’s World.

Tags: cheap, garden seeds, outdoor plants, vegetables

Cheap Light Bar for Seedlings

14.7 years ago cheap, indoor seed starting

A couple months ago we replaced a couple of bathroom light fixtures and it didn’t take too long for me to find the old ones a new home. An old extension code couple electrical connectors and I have a completely non-code light bar. I used the smaller fixture and replaced my light bulbs hanging from sockets using zip ties.

When I have some more time I will plan on making a reflector to redirect more light on the plants but for now the little peppers/tomatoes look very happy.

Tags: cheap, garden seeds, outdoor plants, pepper plants, tomato plants, vegetables

How to make a grow box controller (Original)

14.7 years ago arduino, cheap, LEDs, vegetables

While my existing system was working I decided to make an upgrade to the electronics on my old system for several reasons:

I needed to add more automated external controls (heater, fans, water pump) with my existing design this was entirely possible though was starting to get a little clunky.
The existing controller (PS2 Controller, parallel port with various wires to control relays) worked but was not exactly compact.
Wanted a modular design so if I needed to debug some issue I could simply unplug the USB and power and bring it out of the box in the garage for needed work
Ability for others to create so I can share my software without forcing people to hack PS2 controllers to get to work
Ability to use components like 1Wire temperature sensors (others to come) and Arduino
Just for the fun of it

Well now I have attempted to justify my reasons this is what I used to put the whole thing together:

Parts List

Black plastic project case (8”X6”X3”)
Breadboard or multipurpose PC board
soldering iron and solder (optional if using breadboard)
Arduino
4 – solid state relays
4 — 1K resistor
4 — 2N2222 transistor
4 — 1N4004 diode
DS18S20 (1Wire temperature sensor)
4.7K resistor
(10K resistor and homemade soil sensor) or Vegetronix soil sensor
20 gauge solid copper wire (recommend multiple colors)
Heavy duty extension cord
2 — outlet sockets
2 — socket faceplate (optional)
hot glue gun and glue

If we had lawyers, they probably would want us to say this:
WARNING: I am not an electrician and do not pretend to be one. I do not know the specific building electrical codes of your area, so please be sure your wiring is completed under the proper safety code for your area. As always, using high voltage electricity can result in self-electrocution or burn down your house if not done safely so if you are not comfortable doing this wiring please contact a qualified professional.

Putting it all together

On the electronics side overall the circuits are actually pretty simple and if using a breadboard definitely something that could be tackled by a beginner. Though on the other side since this project is dealing with AC current I definitely would recommend caution (no hands unless power is unplugged) or have someone a little more comfortable with 120/220V help you out.

The Brains

I will be the first to admit that using an Arduino for this application is complete overkill for this application but it gives plenty of room for additions in the future. For all intensive purposes you could have your grow box completely controlled from the Arduino own processing power though on my case the software and UI is more interesting part to me. For this reason the Arduino code is actually very “dumb” basically just taking commands via the build in serial through USB and setting digital outputs to HIGH/LOW or reading analog inputs.
Here is the code for your grow box controller:

/* 
 * GrowBox Arduino Interface 
 * 
 * Descriptions: Simple interface to digital and analog controls by passing serial inputs 
 *               For example:  
 *                  "A1" to read analog value on pin 1 
 *                  "D1H" to set digital pin 1 to HIGH 
 */ 
#include <OneWire.h> 
 
//1-wire 
OneWire  ds(8);  // on pin 8 
#define BADTEMP -1000 
 
//define unique sensor serial code 
byte temperature[8]; 
 
#define PIN_VALUE 1          // numeric pin value (0 through 9) for digital output or analog input 
#define ACTION_TYPE 0        // 'D' for digtal write, 'A' for analog read 
#define DIGITAL_SET_VALUE 2  // Value to write (only used for digital, ignored for analog) 
 
int NUM_OF_ANALOG_READS = 2; 
char commandString[20]; 
 
void setup() 
{ 
  Serial.begin(9600); 
 
  setOneWireHex(); 
 
  // Power control 
  for(int i=0; i<=7; i++) 
  { 
    pinMode(i, OUTPUT);        // sets the digital pins as output 
    digitalWrite(i, LOW);      // turn everything off 
  } 
} 
 
void loop() 
{ 
  readStringFromSerial(); 
 
  if (commandString[ACTION_TYPE] != 0)   { 
    int pinValue = commandString[PIN_VALUE] - '0';  // Convert char to int 
 
    if(commandString[ACTION_TYPE] == 'A') 
      Serial.println(analogRead(pinValue)); 
    else if(commandString[ACTION_TYPE] == 'D') { 
      if(commandString[DIGITAL_SET_VALUE] == 'H') 
        digitalWrite(pinValue, HIGH); 
      else if(commandString[DIGITAL_SET_VALUE] == 'L') 
        digitalWrite(pinValue, LOW); 
 
      Serial.println("OK"); 
    } 
    else if(commandString[ACTION_TYPE] == 'T') { 
      float temp = get_temp(temperature); 
 
      Serial.print(temp); 
      Serial.println("C"); 
    } 
    else if(commandString[ACTION_TYPE] == '1') { 
      printOneWireHex(); 
    } 
    else if(commandString[ACTION_TYPE] == 'V')   { 
      Serial.println("VERSION_1_0_0_0"); 
    } 
    else if(commandString[ACTION_TYPE] == 'P') { 
      Serial.println("PONG"); 
    } 
 
    // Clean Array 
    for (int i=0; i <= 20; i++) 
      commandString[i]=0; 
  } 
 
  delay(100);  // wait a little time 
} 
 
 
void readStringFromSerial() { 
  int i = 0; 
  if(Serial.available()) { 
    while (Serial.available()) { 
      commandString[i] = Serial.read(); 
      i++; 
    } 
  } 
} 
 
void setOneWireHex() { 
    ds.reset_search(); 
    ds.search(temperature); 
} 
 
void printOneWireHex() { 
  ds.reset_search(); 
  if ( !ds.search(temperature)) { 
    Serial.print("NONE\n"); 
  } 
  else { 
    ds.reset_search(); 
 
    int sensor = 0; 
    while(ds.search(temperature)) 
    { 
      Serial.print("S"); 
      Serial.print(sensor); 
      Serial.print("="); 
      for(int i = 0; i < 8; i++) { 
        Serial.print(temperature[i], HEX); 
        Serial.print("."); 
      } 
      Serial.println(); 
    } 
  } 
 
  ds.reset_search(); 
} 
 
float get_temp(byte* addr) 
{ 
  byte present = 0; 
  byte i; 
  byte data[12]; 
 
  ds.reset(); 
  ds.select(addr); 
  ds.write(0x44,1);         // start conversion, with parasite power on at the end 
 
  delay(1000);     // maybe 750ms is enough, maybe not 
  // we might do a ds.depower() here, but the reset will take care of it. 
 
  present = ds.reset(); 
  ds.select(addr); 
  ds.write(0xBE);         // Read Scratchpad 
 
  for ( i = 0; i < 9; i++) { // we need 9 bytes 
    data[i] = ds.read(); 
  } 
 
  int temp; 
  float ftemp; 
  temp = data[0];      // load all 8 bits of the LSB 
 
  if (data[1] > 0x80){  // sign bit set, temp is negative 
    temp = !temp + 1; //two's complement adjustment 
    temp = temp * -1; //flip value negative. 
  } 
 
  //get hi-rez data 
  int cpc; 
  int cr = data[6]; 
  cpc = data[7]; 
 
  if (cpc == 0) 
    return BADTEMP; 
 
  temp = temp >> 1;  // Truncate by dropping bit zero for hi-rez forumua 
  ftemp = temp - (float)0.25 + (cpc - cr)/(float)cpc; 
  //end hi-rez data 
//  ftemp = ((ftemp * 9) / 5.0) + 32; //C -> F 
 
  return ftemp; 
}

Copy and paste the above code into your Arduino software. For the code above I used the OneHire.h library which is free to use and can be downloaded from here. To be able to use this library simply copy the contents to C:\arduino\hardware\libraries\OneWire. Now you should be able to Compile (CTRL+R) and upload the code to the board (CTRL+U)

Now with the software uploaded you can send some simple serial commands via its built in USB to serial adapter to interact with it. The interface is are broken up into 1 to 4 character commands, which I will detail below

Command	Description
T	Returns temperature from One Wire component
D4H	Sets digital pin 4 to HIGH (ON) (replace 4 for alternate pin)
D4L	Sets digital pin 4 to LOW (OFF) (replace 4 for alternate pin)
A1	Reads analog value from pin 1 (replace 1 for alternate pin)
PING	Returns PONG which is used to confirmed controller is online
V	Returns version which is some forethought into the PC application being able to support different versions of controller software

Using the build in serial monitor tool in Arduino.exe, my application, or you should be able to control your Arduino with this very simple command based interface

Now you can hook up some LEDs and watch them blink which is fun for a little while but if you want to add some grow box components read on….

Temperature Sensor

As you can see I have fully embraced the circuit schema on the back of a napkin idea. These are the actual diagrams I crumpled up and stuffed in my pocket with several trips to the garage for some final soldering of various joints until everything was solid.

Below is the simple circuit required to get your 1Wire temperature sensor working. I would recommend checking your documentation (if not labels on the chip) for the orientation to have 1 and 3 correct, if you have it wrong you should get some complete unrealistic number. Hook ground up to pin1 on the DS18S20 and pin 2 hooked up to the digital input pin 8 on the Arduino with 5V with a 4.7K resister in between to step down the voltage.

If everything is hooked up correctly you should get the current room temperature in Celsius by sending command “T” to your Arduino. If you prefer Fahrenheit uncomment line 162 and recompile and upload your changes, though if using my software I support both degree types and do the conversion in the the software. To make sure everything working (or just to play with your new toy) put your fingers on the chip for a couple seconds and take another measurement unless you keep your house very warm the temperature should go up a couple of degrees

Turning things on and off (Relays)

If you were smart enough to check the current requirements of your Solid State Relays (SSR) before you bought them you may be able to skip this whole circuit and simply hook the digital outputs to the 5V positive side and ground to the negative side of the SSR.

Unfortunately if you are like me and bought some SSRs that require more current draw than the Arduino (or any other IC chip) of 40mA then you will need to create the simple circuit below.

Basic idea is pretty simple, you are using the output from the digital pins to switch of the transistor which then allows the ground to complete the circuit with the thus turning on the relay. As you can see there is a 1K resistor between the base (middle pin) of the transistor. If you are not using a SSR relay (though recommend you do) you should add a 1N4004 diode between the positive/negative which protects the transistor from being damaged in case of a high voltage spike which can occur for a fraction of a second when the transistor switched off, this is also known as a back-EMF diode or fly back diode.

Now here you have a couple options. If you are confident of our wiring skills you can do like I did and take a couple of sockets and hook up the neutral and ground in parallel. Two save space and since I really didn’t need two separate plug-ins (nor its own plug) for each relay I removed the little metal bar between the two sockets so they could be switched on independently. Now simply hook up hot to the left side of all your relays in parallel and then connect a wire from the right side of the relay to its own plug on the two sockets.

Now a less wiring intensive method is to simply take a 6 foot (small if you can find them) and cut the hot wire (usually the one with non-smooth wire) and attach each end of the wire to both sides of the relay.

Moisture Sensor

When it comes to a moisture sensor there are a few options. First is the classic two galvanized nails, second is the cheap gypsum soil moisture sensor which I have written up in the provided link. Lastly if my personal favorite the Vegetronix soil sensor.

If you use the Vegetronix hookup is simple no circuit needed simply hook up the 5V to red, bare wire to ground, and black to analog pin 1.

If you are using the other options you will need the simple circuit below. Technically it is a voltage divider, but that doesn’t really matter. Just hook up one end of your sensor to 5V and other sensor to ground with 10K resistor and also connected to analog pin 0.

Cheap soldered solution

If I could do it over I probably should have just bought a small breadboard. I did most of my prototyping with my larger breadboard but got cheap when I was at Radio Shack The Shack and just got this prototype board for half the price.

Virtual breadboard layout

If you are new to soldering or have no interest in learning I would definitely recommend this option. Simply place the components in the holes and make connections with 18 gauge solid copper wire. You should be able to pick a small breadboard for less than $7.

Various applications

Of course for my application, I am using this to integrate with my custom software solution to control my grow box (will be having private/public beta soon). Specifically soil sensor, temperature measurement, heater, lights, exhaust fan, and water pump.

Though there is definitely no reason you can use this same setup for other application.

A couple of ideas:

Home automation (turn on/off lights, turn on coffee machine)
Attic fan
Hydroponic system

Going Forward

I would like to convert this into an Arduino shield. For those new to Arduino I will go with Arduino’s description, “Shields are boards to be mounted on top of the Arduino board and that extend the functionality of Arduino to control different devices, acquire data, etc”
So basic idea is you just plug it into the top the Arduino and hook up a couple wires to some terminal blocks and you have a nice clean solution. Creating these printed circuit boards get much cheaper the higher the quantity. I am considering doing a run of these if I get enough interest so if you may be interested in one of these send me a mail in “Contact” in the header.

Tags: arduino, cheap, coffee grounds, grow lights, growbox, led, vegetables

LED grow box gets an upgrade

14.8 years ago cheap, indoor growbox, indoor seed starting, LEDs, seeds

In our family we are not just cheap in the garden we also keep our house pretty cool to save on heating costs. Unfortunately since the LEDs in my grow box do not put out very much heat the inside is only about 68 F degrees even placing it on top of my refrigerator. For most seeds 77 F degrees is a great ball bark number to shoot for to get the best germination percentage as well as quicker germination times. This was the number I was shooting for, so I decided to add a string of mini incandescent bulbs to help bring up the temperature.

To do this I did exactly what I did for the LEDs just drill a hundred or so holes into the side of the box just slightly smaller than the bulb. Then had the fun job of pushing them all through.

I first tried having all the lights on but that brought the temperature up to 85 degrees, next I tried only half the lights on…70 F degrees. Then I got the idea of adding the blinker bulbs and tada 77 F degrees on the nose (ok technically 77.1 F).

So far everything is looking good have some onions, peppers, basil, and Swiss chard already sprouted and expecting more shortly.

Tags: cheap, garden seeds, grow lights, growbox, led, pepper plants, vegetables

The Cheap Vegetable Gardener

Archive for the ‘cheap’ Category

1 Gallon Milk carton upside down tomato planter

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2-liter bottle upside down tomato planter

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Cheap Homemade Cold Frame

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Cheap Light Bar for Seedlings

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