Hydroponic growing methods
Hydroponics is basically a soil-free growing method. Plants, like all living organisms, need nutrients to grow, and normally they get these nutrients from the soil via their roots. However, it is possible to grow plants using a nutrient solution instead of soil. Still using their roots the plants can obtain a much higher level of nutrient from the solution than they would soil.
There are two different types of hydroponics, both of which can be carried out using cheap hydroponic systems. One is known as medium culture and the other is known as solution culture. Solution culture is where the plants grow in pure nutrient solution. Static solution hydroponics means the plants are grown in nutrient solution in containers that will need to be replenished regularly to ensure the solution stays fresh and nutritious. Continuous flow solution means the plants have a constant flow of nutrient solution running over their roots which is kept and optimum nutrient level and temperature in a central tank. Depending on the size of the growing space, a system called Nutrient Film Technique may be used, this method is sometimes called NFT for short. It is called NFT as the level of water needed is so low it is just a film. This way the plants develop a thick root mat that sits on top of the solution, allowing them to absorb the solution.
Medium culture uses some form of medium for the plants roots to bed into, such as sand, gravel or rock wool. The medium allows the solution to trickle through, giving the plants the nutrients they need. Gravel is one of the cheapest and easiest mediums to use in homemade hydroponic systems as it is very easy to sterilise and re-use. The only real negative with gravel is it is heavy.
Lights are also used to promote growth using hydroponic growing systems. Depending on the location of the plants, there are many lights that can be used to help growth. There are varying spectrums of light available. There are lights that effectively increase the hours of sunlight the plants think they are getting. You can buy lights that also provide the right spectrum to encourage growth.
Tags: continuous solution, hydroponic growing systems, hydroponic lights, medium culture, solution culture, static solution
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