Adding Nutrients to the Tower Garden in the Summer - Stop Throwing Money Away!

How to Add Nutrients to Your Tower Garden in the Summer (Without Overdoing It!)

One of the top questions we hear from Tower Gardeners every summer is:
"How much should I add and when should I add it?"

Great question! And lucky for you, the answer is pretty simple.

For every gallon of water you add to your Tower Garden reservoir, you’ll need 20ml of Mineral Blend A and 20ml of Mineral Blend B—this is the standard full-strength dose.

But hold on—let’s take a quick trip back to science class.

What happens when water gets hot? Evaporation! Your Tower Garden loses water, but guess what sticks around? The minerals.

Meanwhile, your plants are out there transpiring—the plant version of sweating—which means they need more water but not necessarily more nutrients in the summer heat.

Struggling to Grow in the Summer? This Might Be Why.

Ever seen gorgeous Tower Gardens online and wondered why yours isn’t quite as lush? The culprit could be too many nutrients. Yep, too much of a good thing can backfire.

So, How Much Mineral Blend Should You Add in Hot Weather?

When temps consistently hit 85°F+, switch to half strength (10ml per gallon) or add nutrients every other time you refill.

When temps climb over 95°F+, drop it even further to a quarter strength (5ml per gallon).

Why Does This Matter?

Since water evaporates but minerals stay put, adding full-strength nutrients in the summer can create an overly concentrated mix. This makes it harder for plants to absorb water, which can stress them out.

In short: More heat = more water needed, not more food.

Half Strength vs. Every Other Time—Which One’s Better?

Let’s say one day you add 5 gallons of water, then life happens (we get it!), and next time you add 12 gallons. A few days later, it’s 5 gallons again.

If you’re adding nutrients every other time, but never adding the same amount of water, you might accidentally overload or dilute your solution.

The easy fix? Add nutrients at half strength every time you top off the reservoir. No guesswork, no headaches!

Do You Need to Measure the Nutrients in the Reservoir?

Nope! The Tower Garden was designed to be simple—even for beginners with zero gardening experience. As long as you:

✅ Adjust nutrients based on temperature
✅ Empty and refresh the reservoir every 30-60 days

…you don’t need to stress over measuring minerals.

But if you’re the curious type and really want to know how much is in your reservoir, stay tuned—we’ll cover that in our next post!

Final Thoughts from a Couple of Former Skydivers

Yep, Jason and I were skydiving instructors before diving into the world of Tower Gardens (true story!). We weren’t expert growers when we started, and if we can do it, so can you!

If there’s one takeaway here, it’s this: Too much Mineral Blend is a major reason Tower Gardeners struggle in the heat. Not only does it stress out your crops, but it’ll burn through your nutrients twice as fast!

Want more summer growing tips? Check out 10 Summer Tower Garden Growing Tips for even more ways to keep your garden thriving all season long!