The Pros and Cons of Going HYDROPONIC

Rix Dobbs' home-made nutrient film
technique hydroponics system
  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hydroponics is a Latin term, which literally means “working water.” What it means to horticulture is the growing of plants without soil. Hydroponic gardening is an exciting field that offers solutions to several problems faced in the world of food production. For impoverished people who live in terrain or climate inhospitable to agriculture, hydroponics offers a means of growing food. In areas where food is traditionally produced, but where fields are overcrowded or stripped of their nutrients, hydroponics is a way food can be produced using a minimum of space and resources.

Hydroponic growth leads to an increase in production over traditional farming in two ways. For one, hydroponic gardening just plain saves space. Plants can be placed much more closely together than in traditional fields; as many as four times as many plants can be grown in the space using hydroponic techniques as opposed to traditional methods. Secondly, hydroponics eliminates many of the problems associated with traditional farming that leads to sickly, damaged, or wasted crops.

Because hydroponic growers produce their own nutrients mixes, it takes the guesswork out of figuring out which plants will grow best in a field and what nutrients need to be added to the soil. The nutrient mixture is the right one for the plant, in the right ratios, every time. The fear of soil-based diseases is eliminated, because, of course, there is no soil. These two factors come together to make hydroponics an extremely efficient method of food production.

Hydroponics is also environmentally sound. The water consumption in hydroponic growing is significantly less than traditional growth methods; in many cases, hydroponic crops use a tenth of the water of equivalent traditional crops. Also, the water that is used is used more effectively; in hydroponics, weeds do not steal part of the crop’s water supply. 

The benefits are not without their costs, however. The environmental good that hydroponics produces with its decreased water consumption is somewhat negated by the amount of energy needed to support hydroponic growing. Much hydroponic growing happens in greenhouses, where significant amounts of electricity are used trying to give the hydroponic plants all the light they need.

The electricity consumption is environmentally damaging and expensive, and expense is another area where hydroponics comes under the gun. The nutrient mixtures and growing mediums used can be very expensive. While research is happening to try and bring the costs down, and there are some promising leads, like the field of aquaponics, hydroponics is currently financially prohibitive for some.

There is a common misconception that hydroponics produces organic food. While it is possible to grow organic food through hydroponics, this is the exception and not the rule. Most growers used pesticides on their hydroponic crops. Though the pesticides used in hydroponics do not run-off and pollute the surrounding environment like the pesticides used in traditional fields, they are still on the plants themselves. 

The field of hydroponics is filled with promise, and much research is being devoted to solving the concerns that currently stop more farmers from going hydroponic. Until these problems are solved, however, farmers and amateur gardeners alike will need to carefully weigh the pros and cons of hydroponics before making the leap to that style of growing.

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A Birdseye View into the Different Types of HYDROPONIC GROWING Systems

Photo by J Wynia

Hydroponic gardening is the way of the future for environmentally controlled agriculture.

Hydroponic gardening eliminates soil-borne pests and diseases and maximizes water and nutrient uptake by the plant.  Incredible yields can be achieved in a relatively small space with hydroponic systems.  There are many types of hydroponic systems available for home and commercial use.

These systems include the Europonic Rockwool System, the Ebb and Flow System, Aeroponic Systems, Continuous Drip Systems, and Rock wool Based Systems. Hydroponic systems come in all shapes and sizes and can be adapted for nearly any budget.

Nutrient Film Technique, or NFT, is another popular system.  The plants are held in troughs with nutrient solution constantly trickling over the roots.  A reservoir with a pump that is submersible re-circulates the nutrient solution continually, pumping the solution to the top of the troughs to trickle back through the system.  Larger Nutrient Film Technique systems are used commercially, both abroad and in the United States.  When choosing a Nutrient Film Technique system, care must be taken to choose the correct trough size.

Large commercial systems use wider troughs with greater flow capacity.  Aeroponics is a system in which the plant’s roots are suspended in the air.  They are excellent for growing herbs and leafy vegetables.  The plants are held in web pots with neoprene inserts to support the plant.  Different hold configurations in the top cover provide the proper spacing.  Aeroponic systems are also great propagators.  The seedlings can be germinated in Rockwool then transferred directly to the web pots.

The Europonic System is modelled after commercial systems that are used in Europe.  A basic system has three trays and holds eight plants each.  The system may also be expanded to five trays if desired.  A nutrient solution is pumped from a thirty-gallon reservoir to individual emitters at each plant.  The solution trickles through the rock wool, over the roots, and back to the reservoir where it is re-circulated on a constant basis.  Rock wool, or mineral wool, is the most popular and highly used hydroponic medium.  It is made from spun material fibres and has a high water and air holding capacity.

The Europonic System uses rock wool slabs with two slabs fitting into each tray.  Rock wool is easily able to support a relatively extensive root system so the Europonic System is ideal for vine crops such as tomatoes, cucumber, and peppers, plus large flowering plants.

In a continuous drip system, a single pot is used with a two-gallon reservoir underneath.  The system acts like a percolator as air is pumped down a vertical shaft, creating pressure, and nutrient solution is forced up another tube.  A drip ring constantly irrigates the substrate, and the nutrient solution drains back into the reservoir.  This type of system is easy to use, inexpensive, and great for individual experimentation.  However, it is impractical for most commercial applications.  Ebb and flow systems are also popular in hydroponics.  They are good for crops such as lettuce, pepper plants, miniature tomatoes, and potted flowers.

As the water evaporates between flooding, the salts are left behind as a residue and may rise to toxic levels.  It is best to flush the system with pure water periodically to take away any toxic salt buildup.

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A Birdseye View into the Different Types of HYDROPONIC Growing Systems

Rix Dobbs plants vegetables in his home-built nutrient film technique hydroponic system in Durham, North Carolina.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hydroponic gardening is the way of the future for environmentally controlled agriculture. 

Hydroponic gardening eliminates soil-borne pests and diseases and maximizes water and nutrient uptake by the plant.  Incredible yields can be achieved in a relatively small space with hydroponic systems.  There are many types of hydroponic systems available for home and commercial use.

These systems include the Europonic Rockwood System, the Ebb and Flow System, Aeroponic Systems, Continuous Drip Systems, and Rockwool Based Systems. Hydroponic systems come in all shapes and sizes and can be adapted for nearly any budget.

Nutrient Film Technique, or NFT, is another popular system.  The plants are held in troughs with nutrient solution constantly trickling over the roots.  A reservoir with a pump that is submersible re-circulates the nutrient solution continually, pumping the solution to the top of the troughs to trickle back through the system.  Larger Nutrient Film Technique systems are used commercially, both abroad and in the United States.  When choosing a Nutrient Film Technique system, care must be taken to choose the correct trough size.

Large commercial systems use wider troughs with greater flow capacity.  Aeroponics is a system in which the plant’s roots are suspended in air.  They are excellent for growing herbs and leafy vegetables.  The plants are held in web pots with neoprene inserts to support the plant.  Different hold configurations in the top cover provide the proper spacing.  Aeroponic systems are also great propagators.  The seedlings can be germinated in rockwool then transferred directly to the web pots.

The Europonic System is modeled after commercial systems that are used in Europe.  A basic system has three trays and holds eight plants each.  The system may also be expanded to five trays if desired.  A nutrient solution is pumped from a thirty-gallon reservoir to individual emitters at each plant.  The solution trickles through the Rockwool, over the roots, and back to the reservoir where it is re-circulated on a constant basis.  Rockwool, or mineral wool, is the most popular and highly used hydroponic medium.  It is made from spun material fibers and has a high water and air holding capacity.

The Europonic System uses Rockwool slabs with two slabs fitting into each tray.  Rockwool is easily able to support a relatively extensive root system so the Europonic System is ideal for vine crops such as tomatoes, cucumber, and peppers, plus large flowering plants.

In a continuous drip system, a single pot is used with a two-gallon reservoir underneath.  The system acts like a percolator as air is pumped down a vertical shaft, creating pressure, and nutrient solution is forced up another tube.  A drip ring constantly irrigates the substrate, and the nutrient solution drains back into the reservoir.  This type of system is easy to use, inexpensive, and great for individual experimentation.  However, it is impractical for most commercial applications.  Ebb and flow systems are also popular in hydroponics.  They are good for crops such as lettuce, pepper plants, miniature tomatoes, and potted flowers.

As the water evaporates between flooding, the salts are left behind as a residue and may rise to toxic levels.  It is best to flush the system with pure water periodically to take away any toxic salt buildup.

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Hydroponics and Indoor Gardening

Photo: Pixabay

If you have heard of hydroponics or other methods of growing plants without soil and want to try it out at home, you can.  Hydroponics is easy to care for and set-up at home.  There are materials you can buy or some you may be able to find around the house.

The dirt or soil that you use to grow plants in a traditional method is substituted for a growing medium (full of nutrients the plant needs to grow) in hydroponics gardening.  The growing medium is fed directly to the roots by the method of a drip-feeder.  The system can be automated and the gardener can control how many drips the roots receive in a specified time frame.  The more of the growing medium the faster the plants grow.

Since the system can be automated, the amount of time and energy that is required to maintain a hydroponics garden is less than with a traditional garden.  As long as enough water is present and growing medium the plants can be left unattended for a longer period of time.

A home-based hydroponics garden can grow vegetable year round.  The concern about pests and the composition of the soil are not an issue with this type of gardening.  Another bonus with this type of gardening is how fast you can have mature vegetables indoors (by increasing the amount of growing medium).  

The types of plants that are best for hydroponics are ones with thin spider-like roots.  Plants that have a bulb root system are still best grown in the traditional soil method inside a pot or outside.  When you are ready to begin, germinate the seeds for your plants like you normally would.  When the seed has started to sprout and has approximately 2-5 millimeters of growth it is ready to transplant to the hydroponics container and begin growing.

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Tips for Home Hydroponics Gardens

The requirements for plants are the same whether you are growing a garden traditionally or with a hydroponics method.  In hydroponics, the nutrients the plant would get from the soil are replaced by a growing medium that can be purchased at gardening supply stores.  

The need for water and light is still just as important though.  Light can come from a natural source, an artificial source or a combination of the two.  Depending on the type of hydroponics system the method that your plant gets water will differ too.

In order to get the best results from your home-based hydroponics garden, find a south-facing window to give the plants the best natural light.  If this isn’t possible, you can purchase special lights that are specifically designed for plants.  Instead of using a fluorescent light, buy what is known as a discharge light.  This imitates the light the plants would naturally get from the sun and will produce healthier and hardier plants.

The water that the root system is growing it needs to be healthy water full of nutrients and this can be determined by checking the pH level (it should be a pH level of 6).  The pH level should be checked on a regular basis to ensure it is not too acidic or alkaline.  If the reading is too high, add small amounts of vinegar and keep re-testing until you can the reading you want.  If the water reading has a pH level that is too low, use the same procedure to raise the pH level except using baking soda instead of vinegar.

By growing your plants with hydroponics, you will see faster and more abundant growth.  The method that the plants get their nutrients is more efficient and results in robust and prolific plants – whether they are houseplants, vegetable plants, or herbs.

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The Pros and Cons of Going HYDROPONIC

Rix Dobbs shows the roots of a lettuce plant growing in a nutrient
film technique hydroponic tube he built in Durham, North Carolina.
 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hydroponics is a Latin term, which literally means “working water.” What it means to horticulture is the growing of plants without soil. Hydroponic gardening is an exciting field that offers solutions to several problems faced in the world of food production. For impoverished people who live in a terrain or climate inhospitable to agriculture, hydroponics offers a means of growing food. In areas where food is traditionally produced, but where fields are over crowded or stripped of their nutrients, hydroponics is a way food can be produced using a minimum of space and resources. 

Hydroponic growth leads to an increase in production over traditional farming in two ways. For one, hydroponic gardening just plain saves space. Plants can be placed much more closely together than in traditional fields; as many as four times as many plants can be grown in the space using hydroponic techniques as opposed to traditional methods. Secondly, hydroponics eliminates many of the problems associated with traditional farming that leads to sickly, damaged, or wasted crops.

Because hydroponic growers produce their own nutrients mixes, it takes the guess work out of figuring out which plants will grow best in a field and what nutrients need to be added to the soil. The nutrient mixture is the right one for the plant, in the right ratios, every time. The fear of soil-based diseases is eliminated, because, of course, there is no soil. These two factors come together to make hydroponics an extremely efficient method of food production. 

Hydroponics is also environmentally sound. The water consumption in hydroponic growing is significantly less than traditional growth methods; in many cases, hydroponic crops use a tenth of the water of equivalent traditional crops. Also, the water that is used is used more effectively; in hydroponics, weeds do not steal part of the crop’s water supply.  

The benefits are not without their costs, however. The environmental good that hydroponics produces with its decreased water consumption is somewhat negated by the amount of energy needed to support hydroponic growing. Much hydroponic growing happens in greenhouses, where significant amounts of electricity are used trying to give the hydroponic plants all the light the need.

The electricity consumption is environmentally damaging and expensive, and expense is another area where hydroponics comes under the gun. The nutrient mixtures and growing mediums used can be very expensive. While research is happening to try and bring the costs down, and there are some promising leads, like the field of aquaponics, hydroponics is currently financially prohibitive for some.

There is a common misconception that hydroponics produces organic food. While it is possible to grow organic food through hydroponics, this is the exception and not the rule. Most growers used pesticides on their hydroponic crops. Though the pesticides used in hydroponics do not run-off and pollute the surrounding environment like the pesticides used on traditional fields, they are still on the plants themselves. 

The field of hydroponics is filled with promise, and much research is being devoted to solving the concerns that currently stop more farmers from going hydroponic. Until these problems are solved, however, farmers and amateur gardeners alike will need to carefully weigh the pros and cons of hydroponics before making the leap to that style of growing. 

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The Benefits of GARDENING the HYDROPONIC Way

The hydroponic garden of Howard M. Resh.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Gardening has been considered to be one of the most therapeutic rewards for North Americans. Gardening stimulates all of the senses, giving great satisfaction and pleasure.  Hydroponics is the growing of plants without the use of soil.  

There are a variety of benefits associated with hydroponic gardening.  When plants are grown using hydroponics, the roots do not need to search for required nutrients.  The nutrient solution is provided directly to them, which results in plant growth, which is more abundant.  Incorporating hydroponics into an outdoor garden can help add interest and intrigue.  The natural conditions available outdoors in the summer make it a perfect time to experiment with the various types of hydroponic cultivation.  Annual flowers, fruit, herbs, and vegetables do exceptionally well with hydroponics.  

With hydroponics, important growth factors such as light, temperature, and humidity can be controlled.  Since there is no soil, there is less maintenance involved with hydroponics.  There is no need for weeding and the worry of pests or soil-borne diseases is drastically reduced.  Hydroponics is always a soilless culture, but not all soilless cultures are considered to be hydroponics.  Many of these cultures do not use the nutrient solutions, which are required for hydroponics.  There are two main types of hydroponics, which are solution culture and medium culture.

Solution culture uses a nutrient solution but does not use a solid growing medium for the roots. The medium culture has a solid growing medium for the roots such as gravel, sand or a perlite culture.  Hydroponic plants are grown in a number of ways, each supplying nutrient solution to the plants one way or another.  

Hydroponics can be used to grow plants anywhere, even in your own backyard.  Using hydroponics can grow anything from garden crops to flowers.  Hydroponic gardening is considered to be a clean and highly effective method for growing plants.  There are less mess and less maintenance.  Hydroponic gardening helps to eliminate the need for weeding and helps to cut down on diseases and pests.  This form of gardening is also easily adapted to indoor environments, which means it can be used throughout the year to grow a gardener’s favorite plants.

The greatest advantage to hydroponics is the overall outcome of the plants, which will be of better quality and are much healthier.  Gardeners can give nature a helping hand while enjoying the therapeutic benefits of their garden.  Gardeners will be able to watch the spectacular improvements that growing hydroponically can bring to their garden.  

Hydroponics has always been an ecologically sound gardening choice.  It uses much less water than conventional gardening and does not erode the soil or add toxins to the environment.  Soluble nutrient formulas are re-circulated and used by the plants’ roots, which helps eliminate environmental waste.

As many gardeners today are choosing to grow organically, organic crop cultivation in hydroponics has become very popular.  Organic gardening is the cultivation of plants without the use of synthetic chemicals or pesticides.  Gardeners are willing to invest in the extras required by organic gardening because it ensures that no harmful pesticides or fungicides will be used.

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The History and Growth of HYDROPONICS

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.

A hydroponic system. Deutsch: Ein Aufbau einer Hydrokultur. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By the 1970’s, 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 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. 

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