Question:

At an estate sale this weekend, I picked up a "Plant Nurse" Electric air machine model 300. I'd guess this is from the late 70s early 80s. It is an aerator for indoor plants. It has an 8" tube that injects air into the root system. It recommends running it for 15 minutes after you water your plants.

My question is.....does this actually produce noticeable results? I've not encountered anything like this sold today, so I don't know if it was a flop or what happened to them.

Thank you for your time! I appreciate your help! 

Answer:

Aeration is good for the roots of all plants. Without it they cannot survive. I would imagine that the cost of the machine when it was new was the reason for its failure. I have seen large machines in commercial applications to bring back trees from going south. Most of the time solid that has good drainage will provide enough oxygen with H2O. Water is the vehicle to bring oxygen to the roots of plants.