}
This pandemic changed the direction of my life to something different. Last year, I'm at the heights of my career. But now, I'm literally inside the four corners of my bedroom with a cup of coffee every day thinking what would be my future.
Last two weeks, I was searching for something fun to do. I was able to grasp some ideas regarding hydroponics by looking into some videos over youtube. It caught my attention as the idea is planting lettuce without using soil. The trick is to use coco peat (coco coir which is generally very common in our area) and nutrient solutions so that the plant could really thrive without having organic soil to rely on. 
The seedlings that I'll be using are Dabi- Lollo Bionda by Enza Zaden. It is made in the Netherlands and based on its information, it's already pre-germinated meaning it has a high germination rate. 
I bought coco block (compressed coco peat) as my medium. I was searching for it here in Gensan but sad to say that there is no supplier for it. I bought it at shopee and luckily it was from Davao (less shipping fee). The coco block weighs around 5kgs. The supplier noted that this coco block could give 20kgs worth of coco peat after sterilization. (The coco peat must be sterilized using hot water in order to remove any bacterias that is lingering on it. 
This is what coco peat looks like after being sterilized. A 250grams from coco block is now 1kg worth of sterilized coco peat (thanks to water). 
This styro box will serve as the plant box for my upcoming lettuce. It is a fish box that can hold around 18 liters of water. I will be using kratky method to be able to learn more about lettuce. Kratky method costs less than NFT. 
The journey will start with 18 seedlings in a seedling tray and after 13 days, these will be transplanted to the styro box.
I do hope all of you are surviving well in this pandemic and hopefully, this will end soon.
I'm a returnee here in Hive. A few years back I was active here but due to a busy job, I can't find time to continue. but now i'm back !
Thank you and God Bless!