Hydroponics is a modern method that offers multiple advantages and does not require any particular know-how. Even if its name suggests a lot of technicality, rest assured, you do not need to be an expert to succeed in your hydroponic crops.
This is a set of easy-to-follow methods that you will definitely have no trouble mastering. In addition, hydroponic systems do not require significant financial investments or large spaces. Furthermore, you will benefit from the many advantages of this cultivation technique.
What exactly is hydroponics?
Hydroponics is a modern horticultural technique carried out above ground. It allows you to grow fruits and vegetables as well as exotic plants.
In hydroponics, plants do not grow in soil but in water or in an inert substrate (sand, perlite, gravel, pozzolan, clay balls, coconut fiber, perlon wool). Both types of media are continuously enriched with nutrient solutions based on water and mineral salts essential to the plant, including nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium as well as other mineral nutrients and trace elements. Hydroponic systems are in fact designed to ensure a permanent supply of liquid fertilizers via a closed irrigation circuit. Nutrient solutions with suitable compositions are available in specialized stores.
The advantage of hydroponics is to be able to control the environment in which the plants develop for their rapid growth. Hydroponics indeed offers the possibility of controlling all the climatic and edaphic conditions in which plants develop. Everything is automated, from the ambient temperature, humidity and brightness, to the pH of the substrate, including ventilation and the fertility of the support.
Hydroponics, a technique with multiple advantages
The advantages of this cultivation technique are that it can reduce water consumption by 70 to 90% compared to traditional methods and limit fertilizer inputs to less than 70%. In addition, it reduces infestations by pathogens by up to 80%.
Hydroponics also ensures very good production yield, both in quantity and quality, even in the harshest environments. Finally, hydroponic crops do not require large spaces and are conducted cleanly.
Update on the different hydroponic systems
There are various hydroponic systems. They are generally classified according to the nature of the support and that of the material used.
We then distinguish systems outside of solid rooting environments. In this case the roots are, constantly or periodically, immersed in a nutrient solution. This type of hydroponic culture includes, among others, tube systems, nutritional film techniques (NFT) or even floating raft systems (RAFT). The latter are designed in the form of boards, notably made of polystyrene, floating on water enriched with nutrients.
The plants are supported in pots inserted into the rafts and carrying openings which allow the roots to pass through. As for the NFT system, it consists of equipment that directs the flow of nutrient solution towards a tray or channel containing seedlings.
As they grow, their roots become denser until they cover the channel or tray.
Did you know ?
There is a system inspired by aquaculture and which integrates with hydroponics. This is aquaponics: a hydroponic system integrating fish farming. The latter are in fact the suppliers of nutrients for plants. Furthermore, one of the systems used in this type of cultivation is that of Bato buckets or “Dutch buckets”.
It is a set of buckets forming one or two rows and each supplied by an irrigation line and a drainage line.
As for systems incorporating a solid rooting medium, they alternate between the addition of nutrient solution and drainage. The support can be mineral (gravel, sand, pozzolan, rock wool, glass wool, clay balls, vermiculite, perlite) or organic (peat, potting soil, pine bark, coconut fibers, expanded plastic materials, coconut balls) polystyrene, polyurethane foam, etc.). Furthermore, substrates based on rock wool, coconut fiber, clay balls or mineral and volcanic stones (gravel) (pozzolan) are inert environments that do not contain nutrients. Their use in hydroponics requires continuous supply of nutrients via a water irrigation circuit.
Hydroponic systems also differ in their mechanisms. We then distinguish active systems which include a pumping mechanism to circulate the nutrient solution. The circulation of this guarantees its good oxygenation. It is particularly effective in providing the exact dose that meets the needs of the plants in question. This system is often used for crops in rock wool and coconut fiber. There are also passive systems which do not incorporate pumping activity. These are the most adopted by amateur gardeners. The solid substrate is placed on top of a reservoir of nutrient solution. This system is based on the phenomenon of capillarity which allows liquids to circulate from bottom to top. Passive hydroponics equipment is certainly less complex, but this method presents a problem of stagnant water which can damage crops. It is therefore imperative to change the water regularly.
What plants to grow hydroponically?
Many vegetable species can easily be grown hydroponically, in particular varieties of tomatoes but also lettuce, green salad, cucumber, chili peppers as well as strawberries and various condiment and aromatic species. As for ornamental plants, hydroponics would be a very effective method for producing different species of flowers, particularly orchids.
To start hydroponics, it is strongly recommended to start with species that grow quickly and require little or no maintenance. It is also recommended to combine plants that have similar nutritional needs in order to facilitate the management of their crops and the dosage of the nutrient solution.
