Why Hydroponics Gardening is BETTER than using soil...

[lordsirrah]

Many gardeners are beginning to switch to Hydroponics gardening for many different reasons. These types of gardens are small and can easily be grown inside and are perfect for most vegetables, especially the red tomato. Also the equipment required for Hydroponics gardening is not expensive and they are relatively easy to manage.

Hydroponics gardening is the growing of plants without soil, in other words, "dirtless gardening". There are many methods of Hydroponics gardening, most of which work better than regular soil gardening because it is easier to give the plant exactly what it needs when it needs it. Plants will only receive what you give them; therefore you will be able to regulate the pH, nutrients, nutrient strength, water amount, and light amount. This makes it imperative that you research the kind of plants you will be growing so you know what they need to survive.

Hydroponics gardening is only as difficult as you make it. It can be complicated if computers with sensors are used to control water cycles, nutrients, and light for the plants. However, it can also be as simple as a hand watered bucket with a single plant. The normal home Hydroponics system is usually made up of a few basic things: a growing tray, light (natural or artificial), a reservoir, a water controlled pump for watering (or some type of watering equipment), and some form of air pump to give oxygen to the nutrients.

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The growing medium used in Hydroponics gardening can be any number of things, such as Rockwool, perlite, coconut fiber, gravel, sand, vermiculite, or even air. You can get instructions from a gardening store or online or buy separate parts and build your own. There are also kits already assembled for sale in gardening supply stores.

There are certain micro-nutrients that are necessary for healthy plant growth including magnesium, sulfur, calcium, cobalt, boron, iron, copper, manganese, and zinc. These nutrients are absolutely essential to plants and if missing could cause the food to not be as healthy and in some cases even cause health problems for those who eat it. It is very important that you use a quality fertilizer when Hydroponics gardening.

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important aspect of Hydroponics gardening that must be closely regulated is the pH balance. When the pH balance varies the plants will lose the ability to absorb nutrients that it needs. The ease with which the pH in Hydroponics gardening is tested and controlled give it a huge advantage over regular dirt gardening.

Even though there are hundreds of different variations, Wick, Water Culture, Ebb and Flow, Drip, N.F.T., and Aeroponic are the six most basic types of Hydroponics gardening systems. Hydroponics gardening is easy, affordable, and you can have fresh produce, flowers, herbs & spices all year long!

[Bill Rose]

That says it all. No disrespect but to some of us gardening is about growing soil as well as growing vegetables. To some of us, giving back to nature what are species has taken away is just as important as our narcissistic gratification with fresh food. Maybe, one day, you'll be able to grow in a virtual garden but what will that benefit the Earth? Good luck with your experiment and you had better wish us luck too. This is where you live.

- Bill

Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)

[Johnny]

Silly response indeed. Typical . . . .

[JoeSpareBedroom]

It's nice that's it can be done, but use electricity to do what can be done without electricity? Seems like a step backward to me. Wasteful, too.

[Manelli Family]

snip!

I had a friend in NJ try this with tomatoes. She said they were as tasteless as those from the grocery store. So.... no thanks.

[Manelli Family]

It sounds like a good method for growing veggies on a space station somewhere.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

It is. But, for someone who's got a perfectly good yard? I don't get it.

[Pennyaline]

Could be. As with wine, a lot of a food's final nature arises from its terriore.

[hairyarms]

You wish.

These types of gardens are small and can

Well if you have limited space and no soil it would be better than nothing. To do on a scale that would supply a good range of veges for a family would NOT be cheap.

You have stated but offered no evidence that it is easier.

Plants will only receive what you give them; therefore you

You carefully neglect to mention that hydroponics REQUIRES this level of micromanagement, so why is it a benefit? It is is in fact a cost. For example, your growing medium and solutions have very little buffering capacity so the pH is likely to swing widely as a result of comparatively small changes. With good soil that is not a problem so you don't need to micromanage pH.

This makes it imperative that you research

Duh!

Or the depth of your pockets.

It can be

Yes sure, but growing a single plant in a pot of soil is very straightforward too.

The normal

If you have land with soil why do you need all this?

Which is wonderful if you are selling these things.

Of course you don't need to add most of those things to natural soil in most cases. Magnesium, sulphur and calcium are present in macro amounts in good soil (they are hardly micronutrients) and they can be added easily and cheaply if required. The trace elements listed are required but once again not that likely to be missing in soil and not that hard to add. You are actually pointing out that hydroponic solutions must be complex to mimic soil. I bet you sell these solutions too.

Bullshit! Altering pH is easier in solution but that is a disadvantage not an advantage. You only need to closely regulate pH because of the inherent instability of the system. I suppose you want sell expensive pH meters too.

If you have a greenhouse or a very benign climate. Which has nothing to do with hydroponics of course.

So far you have done nothing to convince me that generally speaking for the home gardener hydroponics is better than soil.

David