Whew! Today’s news has been a lot to unpack. Dealing with the news of our beloved AeroGarden going out of business is something! If I’m being honest, I’ve been worried about them for a while because I heard things through the grapevine. But I was always hopeful that they would make it. I will have a drink and a good cry later. LOL! Being an AeroGarden affiliate was good to me. (If you missed that post in the group click here.
UPDATE: They have announced that they will relaunch in the spring! See Have You Heard? AeroGarden is Coming Back!
(I am sorry, this is very long! And, in order to not have this post be any longer than it needs to be some info below links to my group, AeroGarden, Kratky, & Gardening Fanatics, where there were already existing posts. If you are not already a member, I would love to have you.
With that being said, rest assured that the group is not going anywhere. We don’t only discuss AeroGardens. We discuss other brands as well. The description of the group says… “This gardening group covers everything! If you are gardening OBSESSED you have come to the right place. Gardening inside? We cover AeroGardens, iDoo, Click & Grow, Lettuce Grow, Gardyn, DWC, iHarvest, LetPot, Kratky, other hydroponics, or using your AeroGardens for seed starting. Gardening outside? Talk to us about raised beds, GreenStalks, Subpods, your crazy tomatoes, your pepper obsession, and more! Looking to buy a hydroponics system or other gardening supplies? Look out for my coupon codes and deals posts under Featured!”
Please see my full list of affiliate partnerships and discount codes!
Now, on to what many of you want to know.
What Nutrients Should I Use Now?
A repeat question that came up on the post about them closing was what nutrients to use instead. There are tons of hydroponic nutrients on the market. And they are good. But if you want something simple, that you do not have to mix, and that will last a long time, I personally love MaxiGro. I use that in all of my larger systems anyway. It is a dry nutrient. There’s also MaxiBloom which is for fruiting plants. They both work great!
I have also been seeing great things about TPS nutrients. I have not yet tried them personally. But, it’s a liquid nutrient, so it’s ready to go.
And if you do not mind mixing, MasterBlend is a great option. I have used it off and on for years. Works great, but requires a little more work.
And as with any other nutrients sometimes you might want to give it an extra boost. That’s when CalMag comes in handy. For full info on using Cal-Mag see Why and How to Use CalMag over in the group.
Recommended Cal-Mag brands
What About Replacement Parts?
Pumps
Sadly, when a company goes out of business it is sometimes no longer possible to get parts. In the case of AeroGardens many of the parts are proprietary. But, the pumps are not. There are a ton of pumps available on Amazon for only around $12-14. The same pump model works in Harvests, Bounties and Farms. The Sprout uses a different model that can be found here.
Pump Filters
While some will tell you to just use sponges and cut them, replacement pump filters on Amazon are very cheap. I keep a few on hand because they do come up missing from time to time. Or, they get roots embedded in them.
Sponges
There are probably 3 dozen different sponges available from various brands. Some are better than others. Here are a few that I have personally tried and had good luck with…
Park Seed Bio Dome Sponges – These are my my favorite. Use my code LITTLETECHGIRL15 to save 15% off your whole Park Seed order.
Goordik – 100 sponges at a great price.
AeroGarden 50-pack + nutes + cages (get them until they are gone!)
Reetsing (100-pack) – another great 100 pack
Spacers aka Hole Covers
There are literally dozens of AeroGarden spacers aka hole covers available on Amazon from a variety of sellers. I have a few and they work just fine.
Watering Jugs
I have a number of milk jugs around that I use to fill my gardens. But, the AeroGarden No-Spill watering jug is great for adding water to gardens with smaller fill holes. Get them before they are gone.
Where do I Get Seed Pods?
If you are new to AeroGarden you may not know that you do not have to use pre-seeded AG sponges to grow! Yes, they are convenient. But, they can be more expensive than buying packs of seeds. And now that they are going away, you may not be able to find them. But, you can still keep growing.
You can get empty sponges and use your own seeds to grow just about anything. The key is to grow the right size plants. If you have a Harvest or Bounty model, you want to stick with growing micro dwarf tomatoes. There are dozens of varieties! See my full post of AeroGarden tomato growing tips.
Here are some third party sponges that work great…
(BEST CHOICE) Park Seed 60-cell refills (60-pack) – (Use my code, LITTLETECHGIRL15, for 15% off your order)
GoorDik (100-pack)
AeroGarden 50-pack + nutes + cages
Reetsing (100-pack)
Things like lettuce and herbs do not need much thought. You can also grow dwarf kale, peppers, small eggplant (small plant, not fruit), and more. Check out this post on where to get AeroGarden friendly varieties in the group.
So, KEEP CALM AND KEEP USING THOSE AEROGARDENS until you can’t use them anymore! I sure will be.

What if I Want a New System?
As for alternative systems, there are quite a few on the market. And unfortunately, that is probably part of what helped with AG’s demise. The market is saturated! There are constantly new hydroponic units being released. But how do you know what’s a good system and what’s not? I still repeat what I have for many years… Not all systems on Amazon are created equal. Some of the off-brands you just need to stay away from. Others are pretty good.
Some systems to try are the 18-pod MUFGA. This is a decent off-brand system. However, I have seen some posting that their systems have not made it very long. Obviously this can happen with any brand. So if you are okay with having your system last only a few months or so, spending only around 45 bucks on the system is not a bad deal. And of course it might last much longer. Also, check out Ahopegardens.
iDoo is another great option. They have a few different models available. I’m partial to this 12-pod iDoo.
But if you want to go for the glitz and glamor and find a countertop system with more features that is similar to an AeroGarden Bounty, and is created by a great company I would suggest LetPot. The price point is right in line with AeroGarden. And the systems are very well made, and run well. They have a few to choose from now. I now own 3 LetPot – LPH-Max systems. This is a versatile system that comes with a deck to grow 21 pods. Or, you can swap that out for a deck that allows you to grow 2 larger plants. This is great for peppers. I also own a 12-pod LetPot LPH-SE. And depending on the deals at the time, my code, LTG15OFF, might just take an extra 15% off your order.
If you are looking for an AeroGarden Farm alternative, check out this large Ahopegarden system. The light does not go as high as a Farm XL, but it has space to grow 60-pods and the lights are adjustable.
I have not come across any with 36-in growing height yet. However, if you want to go that big a good alternative might be a vertical system. Or to build your own using a large storage container and hanging grow light.
I will be doing more content about others systems. And I will keep providing tips as support about AeroGardens as long as I can. If you want to keep up, please come on over to my group, AeroGarden, Kratky, and Gardening Fanatics.
Happy (bittersweet) growing!
Do you know where I can find a replacement grow light for the Farm Plus 24 model? I contacted them, and they suggested looking on Amazon, but I was unable to find anything.
You cannot find one anywhere but from AeroGarden. Are you certain your light is dead? Sometimes it’s the little cable that connects it to the hood. That is easy to replace. Sometimes it’s the hood itself. Did you try swapping the lights? Now that they are coming back soon I’m sure they will offer support again. Sounds like you got an automated response. A real support rep would know that those are not available on Amazon.