Hydroponic gardeningAll about hydroponic gardening information

When I think of gardening I think dirt, weeds,bugs and cold, dirty fingers. I also think of wonderful, flavorful, fresh and pesticide free food and that’s the reason I tolerate all that other “stuff”.

Would you be interested in getting rid of the dirt, weeds,bugs and the cold dirty fingers and still get great garden produce. What If you could grow all this indoors with almost no effort? Does this sound like something you want to do? Then you need to think Hydroponics.

A method of growing plants both for home and commercial use without using soil is hydroponics. The interest in home hydroponics is a recent phenomenon and is increasing in leaps and bounds and with very good reason. Hydroponic plants are usually more healthy, mature earlier, and use less space.They can be grown year round.

If you are serious about growing clean, flavorful, healthy food and herbs at home year round I would suggest you get one of the many portable hydroponics systems. Get one that promises to have all the instructions you need. If you don’t have a large window to supply enough light for growing plants, get a system with a proper light source

If you are interested in constructing your own system you will be able to find lots of information on the various types of system to build. Don’t let the idea of building your own scare you. It is really quite simple.

Try this to get a beautiful lettuce crop: Get yourself a cheap plastic tote from any hardware store. Be sure it is dark colored. (light colors allow excess green algae growth) You will need 2″ thick styrofoam slightly smaller than the tote. This needs to be carefully shaped, pay particular attention to the corners. It has to move up and down freely inside the tote. (It will float on the liquid underneath). Cut it so that you do not allow any more light than necessary under it. Cut 2″ holes in the styrofoam raft to accommodate your plants growth. they should be 7″-8″ apart.

Next you need an air pump, an air stone and a length of plastic tubing from the pet store. Put the air-stone in the bottom of the tote and carefully place the tubing down the corner so as not to interfere with your styrofoam raft. Use a bead of silicone and press the tubing into it and let dry for a few hours. The air stone infuses the solution with oxygen. Cut foam rubber discs the same size as the holes in your raft. Cut these about 2/3rds of the way across. These will hold your seedlings in the raft. That is essentially all there is to the construction.

By: Carm Paynter

There are a variety of different hydroponics systems available; however there are only a select few systems that the others are based upon. These hydroponic systems are:

Wick

This hydroponics system does not require an aquarium air pump as it uses a common candle wick. It uses these wicks to move the water soluble rich nutritional solution from the clay pellets or even lava chips to the plant roots. This hydroponic grow system is the most inexpensive route, but it can become unhealthy for the plants as they become too wet. This is the major drawback and tends to produce less surviving plants, in the long run.

Ebb and Flow

This indoor gardening system is also known as the Flood and Drain system. It is an indoor growing system that requires an aquarium air pump to push the rich water soluble nutrients to the plant roots where low oxygen contained air is constantly changed air rich in high density oxygen. The pump for this system remains active for roughly 15 minutes, until the high nutrition water soluble fluid reaches the required level. When this happens, the drainage tube drains the excess fluids back into the holding tank. As this indoor gardening system required low maintenance so this is a great pick for the beginner hydroponics hobbyist.

Continuous Drip

As another good beginner system, this hydroponics active system may be used for both, a recover / non-recovery depending on whether or not a tray is used underneath to collect and recycle the nutrient solution. It is considered as an active system due to the usage of a pump to push the solution to the nutrient lines that thread through each plant, connecting them for supplying proper balanced nutrition. To stabilize the plant, a growing medium, like rockwool, is used.

Nutrient Film Technique

This indoor growing hydroponics system is a recovery system that requires the help of gravity, through the means of slanted grow tubes which take the rich nutrient fluid back into the unit. These growing tubes allow the plant roots to be exposed to the nutrient solution which makes this system less forgiving. The reason being is that the plant roots are totally dependent on the continual flow of the nutrients for sustaining plants. This system required higher maintenance and more technical knowledge.

Aeroponic

In this hydroponics system the roots of the plants are continuously misted with nutrient solution. Roots are suspended in midair and receive air constantly. The nutrient mist consists of 20% oxygen, which allows the plan to access a maximum amount of oxygen possible which results in tremendous growth of the plant. As far as hydroponic systems goes, this one is not for the beginner as it’s better suited for the advanced gardener.

There are a variety of hydroponic systems available, however when you’re choosing one it’s best to do your research and know exactly what you want before buying one.

By: Anne Harvester

Hydroponics is the process of growing plants using various mineral nutrient solutions. What makes Hydroponics unique and different from other processes is that in this method, water is used instead of soil. So basically the plant roots are submerged in the mineral nutrient solution in an inert medium like gravel or coconut husk. Other mediums like perlite and gravel are also used. What led to this idea was the fact that plants absorb the necessary nutrients from water in the form of inorganic ions. Soil, however is the natural medium and is a great provider for nutrients but it is not essential for the growth of a plant.

Hydroponics systems are used all around the world for the purpose of food production. In this process, the plants are kept in small containers filled with nutrient solutions. Some of the advantages it provides over other conventional methods are that it doesn’t require soil, the water used for this process can be reused and the process produces a high yield. Now in this process as the water can be reused, the cost for maintaining such a method can be quite low. Also, pest infestation troubles and various diseases can be gotten rid off more easily due to the portability of the containers.

On the other hand, Hydroponics cannot be claimed as a perfect solution either. This method like any other system has its disadvantages. For this process to take place, it is necessary to have a substantial amount of fertilizer and high humidity. While these do wonders for the plant, it also causes Salmonella bacteria to flourish. The high moisture levels created by this process also creates pathogen attacks like damping off. Damping off is an ailment that affects plants and kills the seedlings. This mainly happens in warm and wet conditions.

The techniques of Hydroponics mainly consist of two main types which are solution culture and medium culture. Solution culture, as the name suggest uses a solution as a medium for the plant roots. There are also three different types of solution culture. They are the static solution culture, continuous flow solution culture and aeroponic. The medium culture on the other hand utilizes a solid medium for the plant roots. These cultures are named according to the medium used. For e.g. sand culture, gravel culture etc.

Throughout the years more and more research have went into the process of making Hydroponic systems more efficient and less vulnerable to attacks. Hydroponics greenhouses are excellent controlled environments to provide better efficiency and results in high productivity. Such a controlled environment lets people grow their vegetables regardless of outside temperature or seasons. Some greenhouses even inject more carbon dioxide to increase the yield. Some also put up more lights to control the environment better by lengthening the day. This process can also produce more nutritional vegetables. As each day passes by, more and more innovations are taking place in the hydroponics industry to grow food at the highest quality with increased efficiency.

By: Robin Khan

With the current state of the agricultural industry and all of the rising concerns as to whether or not the fruits and vegetables purchased from the local supermarket can be trusted, many people are looking to alternative methods. Instead of having to rely on what some specific vegetable company says about its products, another option would be to grow your very own hydroponics garden from scratch. This way you could grow your own seasonal crops from the comfort of your own home or property, and not have to worry about GM fruits or unhealthy growing environments.

One of the primary benefits of using a hydroponics system for your vegetable garden is the vegetables your garden produces may vary likely contain higher levels of vitamins and minerals in them than if you were to rely on a soil system. This is because hydroponics allows for better yields due to its unique mineral uptake system. Plants are able to absorb nutrients much better when they do not have to grow out their roots extensively into the soil. When a plant can absorb nutrients directly, it will grow faster and yield bigger vegetables. Additionally, by being able to control the exact quantities of vitamins and nutrients that are present in your garden’s water solution, you can help to ensure that the quality of your vegetables remains exceptionally fresh and rich.

Hydroponics is a safe and easy way to grow plants without having to worry about the complications involved with traditional soil-based growing techniques. Through the creation of a hydroponics garden you can control the environmental conditions that are required for certain plants to grow healthily. These conditions include lighting, temperature, water intake, oxygen intake, and the various nutrients and minerals a plant needs in order to grow properly. Additionally, there are many different hydroponics systems that can be created or elaborated upon using either the simplest household materials or more advanced technology. This means that you can choose to develop your garden according to the specific complexity and size of your growing project.

Growing vegetables from your own garden can help you to save on money that would have otherwise been spent down at the local grocery store. Also, if you know what you are doing, you can ensure that the fruits and vegetables you grow are of the highest quality, richness, and texture. The rewards that can be had from growing your own fruits are well worth the initial effort you will need to put into research and practical application of the gardening knowledge you will have gleaned.

Creating your own garden will likely involve a process of trial and error, much like other aspects of life. Chances are that you will start with a very basic hydroponics system created with simple materials, and gradually progress to a more complex and varied garden. You can start with using a very small space to grow one or two simple vegetable varieties as an experiment. Eventually when you are familiar with the process of growing vegetables hydroponically, you can grow increasingly large amounts of fruits and vegetables for your own personal enjoyment.

By: Robert Fogarty

There are many aspiring gardeners out there looking to cultivate their green thumb. Unfortunately many of them don’t have the space or land to do so. Hydroponics and aeroponics gardening can be the perfect solution to this problem. These are gardening techniques for those with little to no opportunity for a real garden and it is growing in popularity.

Hydroponics systems allow a person to grow nearly all kinds of plants. They work great for beautiful looking and smelling flowers and can produce vegetables as full and tasty that any supermarket can provide. All it takes is a certain amount of nutrient solution. This solution is what is used to replace soil in hydroponics systems.

The definition of hydroponics means ‘water-working,” such as growing plants in a water and nutrient solution with the help of LED grow plants. See no soil. Hydroponics lets you grow plants in a more efficient and productive manner. You spend less time with the back breaking work and more time enjoying the fruits of your labors.

The science behind hydroponics and aeroponics shows that soil isn’t a necessity for a plant to flourish. Instead, it is the other “stuff” such as the elements, minerals and nutrients the soil provides which is vital to the health of the plant. The only job the soil performs is that it holds the nutrients. Deep water culture systems can easily take its place with a little help from grow lights.

In hydroponics kits, you provide the exact nutrients your plants need such as the nutrients and the light from grow lights. The nutrients are added at the base of the plant near the roots and the LED grow lights are obviously place above the plant at a safe distance. Almost all plant you choose can grow within hydroponic systems, however some will do better than others.

Here are just a few of the many advantages of growing with hydroponic kits:

o Smaller deep water culture systems are less work than soil gardens since there is obviously no soil to till as well as no weeds to pull. Since there is no soil, you needn’t worry about soil born diseases, either.

o Hydroponics uses only a small fraction of the water a soil garden requires. There is no water wasted or stolen by weeds.

o Since it is you that is providing the needed nutrients, you can be sure that the plants receive the exact amount they need. This causes them to grow more rapidly while also producing bigger yields.

o It’s been shown that hydroponic systems produce is much higher in nutritional value than ordinary crops grown in fields. It is also thought to tastes better than field-grown produce, as well.

o You can grow your plants on a year-round basis when growing indoors with LED grow lights or in a greenhouse with their grow lights.

So as you can see, hydroponic growing is perfect for the hobby gardener or the farmer growing crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers, leafy crops, like lettuce and herbs and flowing plants.

By: Anne Harvester

Variations on the idea of growing plants in water, or in other media that don’t involve soil, have been around for thousands of years. However, it wasn’t until the modern era that what we know as hydroponics really came to be. There are some real advantages to this method of growing, as long as you do it correctly. However, most people don’t really know how hydroponic gardening works. Let’s take a look.

So what are the benefits of hydroponics?

Did you know that plants grown hydroponically can grow up to fifty percent faster than plants grown in soil under similar conditions? These plants can yield more, too. This is because hydroponic growing involves feeding nutrients into the roots of the plants by growing them in a solution full of important minerals plants need. The plant doesn’t need to expend a lot of its energy growing a large root base. This allows more energy to be put toward growing stems, leaves and fruits.

Vegetables grown hydroponically are consistent, reliable, and healthy, as long as they’re treated correctly. This type of gardening is also relatively low maintenance, and requires no pesticides, since the plants aren’t exposed to the outside. Less water is used than when gardening with soil, too. That’s because nutrient solutions are continuously recycled through the system.

So what are the downsides?

Well, a hydroponic system is expensive to set up, and require periodic attention. The nutrients need to be purchased, rather than being available in the ground. However, for people willing to deal with these factors, hydroponic production can be really useful.

2 Basic Types of Hydroponics Systems:

There are two basic kinds of systems – active and passive. Active systems use a pump to move nutrient solutions through the system. Passive systems use a wick or the capillary action of the medium in which the plants are grown. Passive systems are easier to build and use, but don’t supply enough oxygen to the root system, and may be too wet. This means that they don’t always provide the optimal growth rate for the plants.

These systems can also be characterized by whether or not they recirculate nutrient solution – not all do. Recovery systems use the same solution again and again, adding more nutrients when necessary, while non-recovery systems discard the used nutrient solution.

Systems have been in extensive use by produce growers for many years, but they’re also becoming more popular with hobbyists. There are a number of popular plans and books for building hydroponic systems at home available, as well as plenty of pre-made kits available for purchase. Technological advances are making it easier than ever to use hydroponic methods to grow vegetables at home. It’s an interesting and effective way to grow, and worth checking out!

By: Whitney Segura

Hydroponics means working water and comes from the Greek words ‘hydro’ and ‘ponos’, meaning water and labor. Many different civilizations have utilized hydroponic growing techniques throughout history so they are not a new method of growing plants. Giant strides have been made over the years in this innovative area of agriculture.

Throughout the last century, scientists and horticulturists have experimented with different methods of hydroponics. One of the potential applications of hydroponics that helped continue research was for growing produce in non-arable areas of the world. Hydroponics was also integrated into the space program as hydroponics easily fit into their sustainability plans. The research for their plans is ongoing.

By the 1970s, scientists and analysts wee not the only people interest in hydroponics. Traditional farmers and eager hobbyists began to be attracted to the virtues of hydroponic growing. Some of the positive aspects of hydroponics include the ability to produce higher yields than soil-based agriculture and they allow food to be grown and consumed in areas of the world that cannot support crops in the soil.

Hydroponics also eliminates the need for massive pesticide use, which makes the air, water, soil, and food much cleaner. Commercial growers are changing to hydroponics like never before as the ideals surrounding the growing techniques touch on subjects that interest most people, including world hunger and making the world cleaner.

Everyday people have begun to purchase their own hydroponic systems to grow great tasting and fresh food for their family and friends. Educators have also begun to realize the amazing applications that hydroponics can have in the classroom. Many gardeners have made their dreams come true by making their living in their backyard greenhouse and selling their produce to local restaurants and markets.

The potential of hydroponic culture is incredible, but commercial hydroponics in the United States was held back until hydroponic systems that were economical to build and relatively easy to operate became available in the marketplace. With the advent of high tech plastics and simpler system design, this came about in the late 1970s. The energy saving poly greenhouse covers, the PVC pipe used in the feed systems, and the nutrient injector pumps & reservoir tanks were all made of types of plastic not available prior to the 1970s.

As both small and large hydroponic farms were established in the late 1970s, it was proven that hydroponic culture could produce premium produce and be a profitable venture. As hydroponics attracted more growers, complete plant nutrient formulas, and hydroponic greenhouse systems were being marketed. Environmental control systems were being developed to help growers provide the ideal plant environment in addition to the ideal plant diet.

Commercial crop growers are turning to soil less cultivation more and more. The speed of growth combined with the control over the growing environment means higher quality crops. The worry over soil born diseases and pests are greatly reduced, plus weeding is a thing of the past. For commercial growers, rapid harvest and higher yields are great reasons to grow hydroponically. The techniques used by commercial growers are now available to the home gardener.

Hydroponics may be used in underdeveloped countries for food production in limited space. It is even feasible to grow hydroponically in areas of poor soil conditions, such as deserts. The desert sand serves as a good growing media and seawater can be used to mix nutrient solution once the salts have been removed. The popularity of hydroponics has increased dramatically over a very short period of time. Experimentation and research in the area of indoor and outdoor hydroponic growing is an ongoing process.

By: Tony Buel

For a gardener, growing plants in a controlled setting is a blessing because it would mean better results and may be even the best harvest ever! If you want to grow plants in your home but have no space for a bigger garden or just can’t garden at all because of the weather, why don’t you try hydroponics?

From the Greek words, “hydro”, meaning water, and “ponos”, meaning labor, hydroponics is the method of growing plants without using soil. So, it is lesser hassle than actually doing the gardening outside and digging under the sun and rain. Let me give you the basics in creating your own hydroponics system at home.

There are few things to consider in using hydroponics systems to grow your plants. Here are some of the important things you need to know in building one for your own use.

Choosing the system

You can choose to use one from the six basic types of hydroponics systems: the Drip, Wick, Ebb and Flow, Aeroponics, Water Culture, and Nutrient Film Technique (N.F.T.). Aeroponics is the most complicated, technically and technology-wise. This is the one with the plants hanging in mid air and the system misting the roots periodically with the nutrient solution. The simplest is the Wick system, with the nutrient solution being pulled into the growing platform via a wick. The Drip system is the most commonly used. It works with a pump that delivers the nutrient solution directly to each plant via a tube with drip points in it.

Starter Cubes

Another thing that is important to know about are starter cubes. Starter cubes are where you plant the seeds in and allow them to sprout before you move them to the hydroponics system. Some of the most commonly used are peat pots, Organo-Cubes, Rockwool, and Oasis Cubes. You start by making a hole in the top, put the seed in, and cover the hole with surrounding starter cube materials. Your starter cubes should remain moist, but should never sit in water, or your seedlings might drown.

A nutrient solution is basically composed of fertilizer and water. During the first two weeks, your nutrient solution should be mixed at a 1/4 to 1/2 fertilizer-water ratio. After that, you can move onto the full strength.

Lighting

Plants need a good lighting sources to grow. This is a must, whether you plant in soil or in a system. There are three basic light types you can use indoors: fluorescent, incandescent, and high intensity discharge. Although, it gives off much lower heat than high intensity discharges, fluorescent is still the lighting of choice for small gardeners because they are inexpensive. High intensity discharge lights are more effective and also more expensive.

At last, the seeds! Actually, you can grow whatever you want – tomatoes, lettuces and spinach. These do well under fluorescent lights because they do not need direct sunlight. You can also grow African Violets. There are guides you can buy online and at grow shops near you that may be able to help you in choosing plants to grow in you’re your garden. But, of course, read the labels of your seed packages. Most include information about growing them and help if you’re still learning.

Building your own hydroponics system is not difficult. It’s actually a lot of fun! You can use this to introduce gardening to your kids and even develop it as a hobby in which you can share and enjoy together as a family. Not to mention the benefits of having a great garden at home.

By: Jack Stinton

Hydroponics Light plays a major part in your success of your hydroponics project. Most hydroponic gardens are indoors and as such they need to have lighting of some kind. While you may be tempted to try using incandescent bulbs and lamps for light in your hydroponics system, they don’t provide the right kind of light that your plants will need to thrive and grow. Hydroponics systems need full spectrum lighting that mimics the light from the sun. Specific types of hydroponics gardens will also need a specific type of lighting.

Many of you that are looking to put together a hydroponics kit will find that there is a range of hydroponics lighting on the market.

Hydroponic vegetables grow best in blue spectrum light, which is a cooler form of light. Metal Halide lights are the most popular form of blue spectrum lighting. Hydroponics flowering plants grow best in red-orange light. The best type of red-orange light is the high pressure sodium light (HPS).

Blue spectrum light is great for leafy plants, such as Lettuce, Radish, or Collard. It also helps to keep the plant nice and compact. Many can find the plants in their hydroponics garden getting leggy as it strains for the light, blue light helps to combat this. This is the best type of hydroponics system light for a primary light source. The average Metal Halide light gives around ten thousand hours of good light. After that it will start to put out less and less light. The average Metal Halide light sold can put out a range of light from 175 watts to 1000 watts or more. The wattage output you choose depends on how big your hydroponics system is. Are you just putting together a small homemade hydroponics kit or are you setting up a larger hydroponics garden?

High Pressure Sodium lights producing an orange-red spectrum last around eighteen thousand hours of use. It’s best for flowering plants, such as paper whites and iris. The orange-red light stimulates plants hormones, which makes for more flowering in the plant. Be careful about placing a young plant under red-orange light. It may grow very quickly but you will see only vertical growth and it will become lanky and thin. This is because of the lack of blue spectrum light available to the new plant. The average wattage is about the same for red-orange lights, ranging from 175 to 1000 watts. Of course if your looking to cover more area then you can find professional grow lights in any spectrum with a higher wattage.

The best way to light your hydroponics system seems to be with a combination of blue and red-orange light, to keep plants compact and flowering. Or you can simply purchase a full spectrum light. You can buy fluorescent lights for this. They are available in tubes or compact bulbs. Fluorescent lighting is mostly used to grow seedlings, but it will certainly grow a plant to maturity. This type of lighting can be an easy way to light your hydroponics system without the complication of hooking up both blue and red-orange lights or remembering which is which.

By: Jack Stone

Hydroponics systems offer a way for everyone, regardless of their location, to garden effectively. If you live on the top of a skyscraper, then hydroponics is for you, because it allows you to grow fruits, flowers and vegetables without any soil at all. If you live on the tundra, or in the desert, you are in luck as well, because hydroponics systems offer a way to grow all sorts of plants indoors, where you can control the climate. Although there are several different types of hydroponics systems available, one of the most popular ones is deep water culture, and a related method of indoor gardening called aeroponics.

Deep water culture is one of several types of hydroponics systems where the roots of the plants actually stay in the in the growing medium that is a solution, which is made up of water and plant food called nutrient. In deep water culture the plants receive needed oxygen even when the roots are submerged in water through the use of a aerator pump and air stones, which both help to oxygenate the water. Deep water culture requires equipment such as a container like a bucket, which holds the solution and plant roots. The top of the plant, called the crown, has to be held above the water or it will rot. This is accomplished usually by using a net suspended over the lid of the bucket with a hole cut out of the center of the lid.

Aeroponics uses no growing medium at all for the plant roots. Instead, with aeroponics the plants are grown with the roots in the air, and the roots are routinely misted with a water and nutrient solution. The crown of the plant is held suspended in the air in a plastic tray that has had holes cut in it large enough for the roots to poke through but small enough to keep the top of the plant held upright. Plants grown with aeroponics have full access to carbon dioxide, which plants need in order to photosynthesize the nutrients they need for growth and development.

You can find kits online for both an aeroponics or deep water culture set up. Kits simplify getting started with gardening, because all of the equipment you need to get started is included. Basics kits include items such as reservoirs, net pots, aerators, air stones and spray pumps. Other supplies that you will need are appropriate grow lights and nutrient. The type of nutrient you need will depend on the plants you wish to grow. You can find out more about all sorts of hydroponic gardening and supplies online.

By: Susan Slobac