Before I start this post I want to give my thanks and admiration to Britta Riley and her  team for developing this really cool, practical way of farming. Right now I have 2 windowfarm colums working and I am getting ready to start the third. This has been a really fun, and at times frustrating project. Most frustration came from not finding the  materials readily accessible, so I made modifications as I went along. I do not have long window spaces that would accomodate the V3.0 MAMA system, which is very visually appealing. Having window space taken up by the nutrient bottle that could have housed a plant instead really bothered me, so I am now working on a combination of both systems(V3.0 and V2.0) with a water reservoir on the floor and a bottle column suspended from a shower curtain rod inserted in the window frame.

The water bottles suggested were used for the first column, but  I didn’t like the thin plastic and shape of the bottle, so I used Smart Water bottles(1 liter size) in the  next two columns. These bottles are very durable, have a smooth straight shape and can be duct-taped instead of painted and still look good. The net cup rims have to be trimmed off to fit nicely. When the hole is drilled into the bottom, I use a bit size a little smaller than the bottle neck and file the edges until I get a very snug fit. After nesting the bottles, when the caps are screwed on it creates a very strong column that needs no support. I  could not find bead chain couplers with a hole in the center, so I use bead chain to suspend the first bottle. The plastic in the bottom of the Smart Water bottle is thick and rigid enough to hold each successive bottle in place without taping the bottles to a stick. I am ordering the couplers with the hole on the internet just in case weight becomes an issue.

The air assembly on the V3.0 system(bike thingie) seemed too complicated. My assembly uses a sealing washer placed over  arrow end of the check valve, then I screw the needle onto that end. Using plumber’s teflon sealing tape, I wrap it around the threaded end of the needle and  check valve stem until it is wider than the opening of the sports bottle hole. I insert that end into the hole  until washer is tight against the opening. The tape creates the perfect seal!