Customer Reviews

AeroGarden Extra Elite

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I already owned a Classic version. I liked it enough that I wanted another and decided to go with the Pro 200 mainly for the extra light output. The unit is very energy efficient pulling an average of 61 watts when the lights and pump are on according to my kill-a-watt meter. The Classic version pulls a little bit less at 47 watts. The design of the bulbs on this model is much better as it delivers a more uniform light. The hood can also be adjusted higher than the Classic model making this model excellent for trying to grow your own seeds especially with the added Master Gardener Kit. Definately worth the extra money to buy this version. The Classic is great, but if I did it again I would have bought 2 of these. (And I haven't had an issue with smoking bulbs)

I love the Pro 200! I bought a Space Saver 6 originally and liked it so much I decided to get a Pro 200. The Pro 200 is so much quieter than the other Aerogarden and it pumps the water up over the roots so that even if the water level starts to get low, the roots still get water. The Space saver 6 lets the roots just sit down in the reservoir tank and the pump agitates the water. This can be a problem if you have new plants with short roots and forget to check the water level for a while (happened to me).

I started tomato seeds in the Pro 200 and then 4 days later in some Jiffy peat pellets for transferring outside. Currently the tomatoes in the peat pots are about 6 inches tall and spindly (very similar to previous years), however the tomatoes in the Pro200 are ~14 inches tall and 18 inches wide with 40+ blooms and some baby tomatoes started! I have never seen such thick tomato plants, even outside! I think the main difference is the extra grow light. This thing is bright! If I forget to close my bedroom door, it frequently wakes me up at 3AM when the lights come on.

I'm growing amazing lettuce in the other Aerogarden and it is doing well. Both work well, but if I had to choose I would pick the pro 200 in a heart beat.

I am thoroughly impressed with this Aerogarden. It has been a couple of weeks and everything is sprouting up and is growing amazingly fast and GREEN.

Amazon shipping fiasco:
First one Amazon shipped to us it was in a cheap cardboard box, you know the kind it is a flimsy cardboard you can tear through with a finger nail. It was inside a larger Amazon box but it was smashed on one side. Inside of the cheap box was the Aero garden smashed and all of the bulbs were broken. Amazon sent us one the next day along with a UPC for the outside of the box for the RMA. The next one was in a COMPLETELY different box, like from another company all together. I am not sure how we could get 2 different products from one manufacturer in 2 different boxes. The second box was a full color nice cardboard with all of the parts intact.

S.A.D.
If you have Seasonal Affective Disorder your psychiatrist or MD will probably prescribe a full spectrum light for you to have near you for the winter months. This grow kit contains 3 of those lights and if you place this near you say, when you are watching TV you will get many hours of natural light, while watching your plants grow!

Bonus plant growth:
That being said the lights are amazingly bright. They have to mimic the sun for goodness sake. I have this in my kitchen next to other house plants. As an added benefit is if you place the Aerogarden next to your other house plants they will get the benefit of all that extra light. I have succulents and cacti next to it and they are all growing MUCH better. Setting the lights to turn off at night is a breeze. Just hold the light on/off button on until the light button blinks meaning it took the time. It will then turn on 8 hours later.

Pros:
>> Grow anywhere at any time of the year
>> VERY easy setup - took 5 minutes from opening box until all set.
>> Pretty much fool-proof
>> Lots of extra light that will turn off at night automatically.
>> 7 spots vs 6 in a smaller model

Cons:
<< Bulbs will need to be replaced at $20 a pop x 3 is a bit extravagant
<< Chance to get a lemon from Amazon seems random due to the 2 separate ones they sent us. Makes me wonder.
<< Manual said to "Add 2 tablets to the water" on setup yet our kit only had these liquid nutrient things, which made us wonder if we needed to add 2 of those or are they more potent than the old tablets. Seems better to have liquid, just wish the directions were easier.

Overall a really cool way to grow all year and to have fresh herbs and other veggies at arms reach when cooking. Once the herbs are done we will be growing wheatgrass to use with our Omega J8005 Nutrition Center Single-Gear Commercial Masticating Juicer, Chrome and Black

Thank you for reading my review.

I recently ordered an Aerogarden Pro 200 directly from Aerogrow. I had been using it for about a week when a lot of smelly smoke started pouring from the vent above the light bulbs. I quickly unplugged it, afraid that it was about to burst into flames. I called Aerogrow the next day to report the problem. I was told by the operator that it was due to a problem in the design of the new deluxe grow bulbs. He tried to assure me that it wouldn't cause a fire and that they hoped the problem would be corrected in future models. It makes me angry that they knew of a safety problem with their product and were shipping it anyways. I filed a report with the consumer product safety commission.

My husband was not at all impressed with the AeroGrow Herb Garden when it first arrived & I set it up. And nothing really started to grow for the first week or so. But when it finally germinated, it was amazing just how fast the basil grew. It was like you could actually sit & watch it grow. We have the lights all the way up now & we have to trim it every couple of days to keep it from reaching the lights. The only downside I have found is that the basil grows so well it overshadows the other herbs & somewhat stunts their growth. If I plant again, I will plant the other herbs first & let them mature a little before I start the basil.

I've had my aero garden since February and just retired my first garden for the season. Assembly and operation are easy and I did not have any problems with that. I grew herbs and loved to have fresh herbs whenever I need them. Of the seven seed pots I started, Basil, Parsley, Dill, and Thyme grew just fine. They grew vigorously and yielded often more than I needed. They tasted great too. The Sage was problematic from the beginning and never really yielded enough to cook a whole meal with it. The cilantro did not grow right at first. After lots of rinsing and clearing out bugs from the root ball it was fine for about a month, later began to be bug infested and lanky. The chives were also growing well at the beginning, but they had very little taste - they grew out flat and leathery and I threw them out in early April when my chives outside came back. Starting about 5 weeks after I started the herb garden, I had to take the thing apart at least once a week to rinse out everything because it was full of aphids and the little green bugs, which was kind of a drag but easy enough to do. None of my other many houseplants had this problem. I trimmed the root balls where necessary to avoid clogging the pump so I did not have any problems with the pump. On the other hand, the timer for refilling water and replacing nutrients did not work very well. Sometimes the water was low without the little light coming on and sometimes the water reminder blinked while it was still full. After a while, I got used to the various noises from the water dripping if water was needed. Once, after rinsing everything, the whole thing reset to the germination cycle for some reason and I had to spend a few hours trying to figure out how to get it back to the mature growth cycle. So my take on this is decidedly mixed. One of the great things (if it works) is that you don't have to spend as much time cleaning and picking if you grow them without soil. But with the bugs and all that advantage is almost lost. On the other hand, it's great to have fresh herbs right in your kitchen without having to run to the store. If you love herbs, it's worth the trouble in the winter. In the summer, window boxes etc. are probably easier and cheaper.

I have had the AeroGarden up and running for a few weeks now and it is doing great! The system is very easy to set up. I look forward to eating fresh tomatoes. I live in Alaska, so this will be a special treat.

We got the AeroGarden Pro 200 for Christmas. We just finished the herbs kit that came with it. We could have gone longer, but we really wanted to get the salad greens kit growing.

So far so good. The unit was easy to assemble and easy to plant the first kit. Everything grew so quick and even when you harvested everything you could, there was typically more to harvest two days later.

The pump does make a slight noise at times when running, but no more than a fish tank would. The lamps really do light up the room, so we placed this in the kitchen. You can adjust the time when the lamps shut off, so if the light might keep you awake, you can have it shut off when you go to bed. In the late evening, we rarely turn on the kitchen light to do things as the AeroGarden pretty much lights up the entire kitchen enough to see and do most things.

I am knocking off one star for a couple of reasons. First, there is a light indicator for when the water level is too low. It seems to work ok because when we cleaned the unit for a new planting, we pluged it in without enough water and it knew that. During the herbs growing though, the indicator failed to ever let us know the water was too low. So, we had to routinely check it and fill it and not trust the indicator.

Secondly, when we started our new salad greens kit, we cleaned everything as it said to. There is a little pump filter in there that turns dirty brown and you have to find it amongst the roots. Very hard to find and the instructions do not even give you a good illustration to know what to look for.

Third, it recommends to replace the filters every time or other time you replant and they should include one in every kit. The instructions say to contact support to order filters. These plant kits are $20, so the need to include a filter.

The last issue for knocking off one star is the plant kits themselves. At typically $20, they are rather pricey. They all comes with instructions and growing books. The growing part of the documentation I can understand, but they also include the same documentation that comes with the AeroGarden, so another thick book. What a waste of trees and probably adds to the price.

Is this cheaper than buying anything this can grow? Heck no. However, it is fun to watch and fun to grow things. We spend a lot of money on various organic products, so at least mentally, the AeroGarden feels slightly cost justified.

After I submit this review, I am purchsing another one so we can get even more things growing.

It worked as advertised. It's a miracle when this (a product works as advertised) happens now days. I like it. I don't give it all 5 stars because the accessories are expensive. For example, the light bulbs don't last too long and they are expensive to replace.

I have two of these right next to each other (see photos) and they are great. These do not overheat unless you put them in a poorly ventilated place such as a closet or a cabinet. This product is awesome. If you want to buy one of these to put it in a closet, you may want to think twice. Hot lights plus low airflow equals overheating, duh.