Hydroponic growing is something that confuses those without the knowledge of the concept, but in actual fact once the basics are understood, it is actually a fascinating and productive way of growing vegetables for the home supply.
Hydroponics is the science of growing plants without soil and this is where some people get confused as they don't understand that it really is possible to grow plants without soil as we traditionally know it. Although soil is not used, there is often a growing medium used to support the plants in the growing pots. A growing medium could be coconut husk, perlite, rockwool or one of the other products that are used.
Nutrients
That is really where the difference lies. Just because the plants do not grow in soil, it does not mean that they do not need nutrients to grow, but they do. In fact, the use of the right nutrients is one of the important parts of hydroponic growing that a grower needs to understand and get right.
The difference is that instead of the plant getting their nutrients from the soil, the plants are suspended in water and nutrients are added to water and the roots of the plants get the nutrients that way.
Why Have A Hydroponic Garden
Hydroponic growing has been used commercially since 1970 and it is growing rapidly in the home gardening sector because it is an environmentally friendly way of growing fresh fruit and vegetables. Another benefit of it for the home gardener is the fact that from a small growing space an excellent supply of fresh produce can be harvested.
Another factor that many do not realize is the fact that hydroponic growing is an intensive form of gardening with many plants being ready to use in half the time than those grown in the garden soil. Take lettuces for example, you can have a fully matured lettuce within 6 weeks when it is grown hydroponically.
There are endless advantages to growing hydroponically, least of which are:
Hydroponic systems are improving all the time and they can be set up from simple systems as in a foam box to the more complicated systems such as vertical gardens. Like anything new, it takes some time to learn the basics, but once you have there are definitely a lot of benefits.
Hydroponics is the science of growing plants without soil and this is where some people get confused as they don't understand that it really is possible to grow plants without soil as we traditionally know it. Although soil is not used, there is often a growing medium used to support the plants in the growing pots. A growing medium could be coconut husk, perlite, rockwool or one of the other products that are used.
Nutrients
That is really where the difference lies. Just because the plants do not grow in soil, it does not mean that they do not need nutrients to grow, but they do. In fact, the use of the right nutrients is one of the important parts of hydroponic growing that a grower needs to understand and get right.
The difference is that instead of the plant getting their nutrients from the soil, the plants are suspended in water and nutrients are added to water and the roots of the plants get the nutrients that way.
Why Have A Hydroponic Garden
Hydroponic growing has been used commercially since 1970 and it is growing rapidly in the home gardening sector because it is an environmentally friendly way of growing fresh fruit and vegetables. Another benefit of it for the home gardener is the fact that from a small growing space an excellent supply of fresh produce can be harvested.
Another factor that many do not realize is the fact that hydroponic growing is an intensive form of gardening with many plants being ready to use in half the time than those grown in the garden soil. Take lettuces for example, you can have a fully matured lettuce within 6 weeks when it is grown hydroponically.
There are endless advantages to growing hydroponically, least of which are:
- Less use of water – up to 95% less water than soil grown plants
- Denser planting therefore less space is required
- Produce looks better with less markings
- Hot conditions do not affect the plants as much due to constant water supply
- Can be grown in arid areas and indoors with correct lighting
- Plants reach maturity much earlier
- Significantly less pests and diseases
- Less maintenance is required, e.g. no weeding problems
Hydroponic systems are improving all the time and they can be set up from simple systems as in a foam box to the more complicated systems such as vertical gardens. Like anything new, it takes some time to learn the basics, but once you have there are definitely a lot of benefits.
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