Hydroponics is a term derived from the ancient Greek words, hydro, meaning water, and ponos meaning labor, or "water-working.
The following Hydroponics Q&A will be useful for indoor and outdoor Hydroponics farming at home as well as the management of commercial Hydroponic greenhouses and commercial farming.
Pls. feel free to comment with your own questions and answers.
The Basics
How does hydroponics work?
Hydroponics is the cultivation of crops using nutrient-rich water instead of soil and utilizes a hydroponic growing system. Nutrients are directly fed to the plant's roots to achieve rapid growth in leafy greens, fruits, vegetables, ornamentals, and sometimes root crops.
What crops can be cultivated using Hydroponics?
Leafy greens and most herbs are perfect for almost any hydroponic system.
Vining crops like tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers grow well with hydroponics but will take up more space and may require trellising. Melons are in the same boat—they do just fine without soil but are large and need some support.
Most root vegetables aren’t ideal for hydroponics, except for green onions and garlic. It’s not that you can’t grow a potato in a hydroponic system, it’s just inefficient and will lead to lackluster yields and wasted resources.
What are the tools and grow mediums that we need to get started with hydroponics at home?
The basic setup includes food-grade PVC pipes or grow boxes with plant holding spaces, netted pots, a growth medium with nutrient sets, a measuring cup, an air pump, seeds, and the instruction manual.
You can also have a water pump with a timer and set the frequency to further reduce monitoring or maintenance. Hydroponic setups are very easy to automate.
Does Hydroponic Produce Taste Better than Soil Grown Crops?
It depends on the quality of soil, nutrients, and all other factors that will determine the flavor and quality of crops during harvest - hydroponic plants grow in their own customized climate, and they are given the appropriate conditions to taste their best. Hydroponic farmers can also customize the flavor profile of these plants even further.
Are Hydroponically Grown Fruits and Vegetable Safe to Eat?
Hydroponically grown crops can be safer than most produce grown in soil, as growing food indoors reduces the need for pesticides. Additionally, soil-borne diseases do not present a problem because the systems do not utilize soil.
Are Plants Grown Hydroponically Organic?
Hydroponic systems rely on nutrient solutions to provide all of the plant nutrition; these nutrients may come from organic sources, but they usually rely on refined mineral fertilizers. Most organic produce is grown using natural soil minerals, organic supplements, and unrefined minerals.
What is Aeroponics?
Aeroponics is a method of growing where plants roots are suspended in air and receive water and nutrients from a spray, fine mist or fog. This method of growing gives rapid growth and above average yields.
In aeroponics systems, seeds are “planted” in pieces of foam stuffed into tiny pots, which are exposed to light on one end and nutrient mist on the other. The foam also holds the stem and root mass in place as the plants grow.
10 Interesting Facts About Hydroponics
Ancient Origins
Hydroponics is not a new concept. It has been practiced in various forms for centuries, with the Hanging Gardens of Babylon often cited as an early example.
Soilless Growth
Water Efficiency
Faster Growth
Increased Yields
Controlled Environment
Pest and Disease Control
Space Efficiency
Nutrient Customization
NASA Research
What is Aquaponics?
Aquaponics is a very sustainable practice of raising fish and using the water the fish live in to feed plants. The fish waste becomes available as food for the plants after it is broken-down by bacteria.
The basic premise of aquaponics is that the waste produced by your fish feeds the plants, and the plants clean the water for the fish, producing one continuous cycle.
The Grow System
What are the types of hydroponics systems?
The Kratky Method
This is a very rudimentary system and is only used by amateurs who want to dip their feet into hydroponics or just for fun.
Still, it gives the idea of the key principles of hydroponics: all you need is a jar or tank and the nutrient solution. You will put your plant or plants with the areal part out of the solution and the roots dipping into it.
Deep Water Culture (DWC)
This is the most simple type of hydroponic system. In this type of hydroponic system plants are suspended in an oxygen-enriched nutrient solution.
Wick System
This is a passive hydroponic system, in which wicks run from the base of the plant container down to a reservoir and draw the nutrient solution upwards.
Ebb and Flow
This is the most popular hydroponic system due to its low maintenance and low cost. It is widely used for plug production and potted plants. In this type of system, the growing bed is flooded with nutrient solution and then it is allowed to drain. The duration and frequency of the flood depend on factors such as the type of growing medium used, size of containers and plant water requirements.
NFT hydroponic systems
This system uses a continuous nutrient solution flow over the roots. This results in a thin film of nutrient solution around the roots, allowing them both aeration and access to nutrients.
The Drip System
This is very much linked to drip irrigation in soil gardening, which is becoming very popular and is now basically the norm in hot and dry countries, where you will see long pipes and hoses used to irrigate crops, saving water and preventing evaporation.
Are ready-made systems available in the market?
Yes, you also save an enormous amount of time and effort with professionally ready-made systems.
Plant Nutrient Solution
What do plants need to grow in a hydroponics system?
For survival, plants need to respire, get moisture and photosynthesize. And they are in the form of Oxygen, Carbon, Hydrogen, and Nitrogen. O, C, H, and N are all readily available in the air, and water. Lights supply plants with energy to make food. Micro and macronutrients from plant nutrient solutions are equally important for plant development.
What are the Steps in Preparing Plant Nutrients?
Your Hydroponics working solution is a mixture of water and nutrient solution that is used to grow plants. The working solution provides the nutrients a plant needs in order to grow.
How often should I change my Nutrient Solution?
If you drain, clean, and remix the nutrients, every 7 to 10 days. It's okay to top off with fresh water daily.
What to Monitor and how Often Should I Monitor My Water Reservoir?
It is important to closely monitor pH, soluble salts, EC, humidity levels and temperature to optimize plant growth.
I water quality important in Hydroponics?
Water quality is important in hydroponics to get the most out of your plants. Hardwater and well water have high amount of minerals that build up and damage plants. Reverse Osmosis or de-chlorinating filters remove impurities from water.
Seeds and Seedlings
How to Sow Seeds in Hydroponics?
Whether you’re growing seeds for your garden or for hydroponics, you’ll need to provide seeds and seedlings with their basic needs: light, water, nutrients, and a place to anchor themselves.
How long do seeds take to germinate in hydroponics?
Most lettuce and herb varieties germinate within 2-5 days. Most vegetable seeds germinate within 7-14 days.
When to transplant seedlings to a hydroponic system
The best way to know when to transplant seedlings to a hydroponic system is when they are around 3 inches tall and have two or at least one set of true leaves growing on their stem. This usually happens after 15 days from sowing.
Can you switch plants from soil to hydroponics?
Yes
What is the best medium to germinate seeds?
Two of the most popular growing media for hydroponic systems are Rockwool and horticultural sponge
Lighting
Grow lights vs. Natural Sunlight. Which is Better?
Full spectrum grow lights have the same effect as good as sunlight! But sunlight is more powerful than grow lights. A plant gets about the same amount of energy from 13 hours under a grow light as it does from six hours under the sun. Plus, sunlight is free.
What type of Grow Lights Should I use?
Growers need to understand all of their plant’s requirements, and also what they want from their plants. When they know this, they can put things in place, and choose the best lighting system that their budget allows.
How Long Should I Keep my Grow Lights on every day?
For most leafy greens and herbs are 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness to mimic the outside condition. Most grow lights you buy in the market have an instruction manual attached.
What to Measure and Maintain
What pH levels should I maintain?
The consensus for pH in a hydroponic system is that it should be kept between 5.5 - 6.5 throughout the cycle, ideally in the growth/vegetative phase pH should be maintained at 5.8-6.2 - if the pH fluctuates too much the plant will be unable to uptake specific "slow" moving nutrients, so having all the necessary equipment like pH pens will save a lot of guesswork.
How do I adjust my pH?
Once you have added in your nutrients you then check your pH. If it is outside of your preferred pH zone but your preference may vary; you can use a Ph up solution usually made of Potassium Hydroxide or a pH down solution usually made of Phosphoric acid. We have these solutions for sale at our store and are also available on Amazon.
What TDS Levels should I maintain?
The appropriate TDS level for hydroponics farming is approximately 800. Most plants thrive within TDS levels of 600 to 1000, hence 800 is the sweet spot. That said, it's always wise to check the preferred TDS level for any crop you plan on growing.
What TDS Levels should I maintain?
EC (Electrical conductivity) requirements change as the plant grows from a seedling into a mature plant. When your plants are young they require less food, so it makes sense that as the plant grows we increase the amount of food to fulfill the plant's needs.
Growth/Vegetative requirements: 0.6 - 0.8 EC
Bloom/Flowering requirements: 1.6 - 2.4 EC
Growth Stage
What Causes Tip Burns in Plants?
Inner tip burn can be caused by a lack of calcium in the young developing leaves. Outer tip burn is caused by the nutrient level being higher than the plant can handle.
What Causes Leaves to Turn Yellow?
Yellow leaves mean different things depending on the plant variety. The most common causes are low oxygen levels due to lack of aeration or too much water, nutrient deficiency, pH imbalance, and incorrect water reservoir temperature. always use an EC meter and a pH pen to prevent this from happening.
Why do Plants Stretch or Become Leggy?
Plants stretch when the light is too far away from the plants or there may be too many plants competing with each other for the light.
How Much Ventilation is Optimum?
Ventilation needs to be enough to maintain a temperature of about 28 degrees and a humidity of about 55-60% in the center of the plant canopy.
It’s better to have too much than too little ventilation. During summer give about 120ltrs per second of air going in and the same amount being vented per square meter of floor area.
Try to maintain the temperature inside no higher than outside. In winter, vent according to ambient temperature and humidity.
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