PRESENTS

THE TOP 10 THINGS

EVERY HYDROPONIC HOBBYIST

MUST KNOW
(WITH BONUS MATERIAL)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
“The author attempting to look very authory”
Jeff is one of three partners of CEC Stores.
Their flagship website,
www.organicgrowboxes.com
was created for the hydroponic hobbyist.
WHY WRITE THIS BOOK?
I wanted my first sentence in this e-book to
clearly explain that I am not an author. Other
than my Master’s Thesis, I haven’t written more
than 750 words in nearly 15 years. To say the
first draft of this e-book was written with a
crayon wouldn’t be too far from the truth.
So, why write this e-book? There are a ton
of variables with hydroponics. What should I
grow? What nutrients should I use?
What lights do I need? Nobody wants to
waste money and so these questions should
be answered before much money is invested. A
simplified hydroponic system can be purchased
or built for well under $200 and produce
good and healthy vegetables. On the other
end of the spectrum, a hobbyist could spend
thousands of dollars purchasing an incredibly
ornate and automated system.
There are few universal truths in hydroponics.
Giving specific instructions or setting out rules
is very difficult because of the wide variations
in things such as water quality, type of systems,
nutrient ingredients and environmental factors.
However, these truths are important to know.
With the knowledge from this e-book you
should be able to answer the introductory
questions that you may have about the hobby
and at least get you off on the right foot.
This book is not the “end all be all” for
hydroponic e-books. We tried to keep the
scope rather narrow to appeal to as many
hobbyists as possible. However, if you have any
further questions, comments, criticisms, etc.,
then please feel free to email me at
Jeff@organicgrowboxes.com and I will try to
answer as soon as possible.
I will wrap the e-book up with a couple
questions that were asked to us by some
reddit users. I’d like to thank them for taking
the time to ask the questions.
2.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. What Is Hydroponics? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4

2. To Buy or To Build? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 5

3. Different Hydroponic Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7

4. Sowing the Seeds and Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8

5. Proper Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 10

6. Optimal Temperatures/Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11

7. Water Analysis/pH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12

8. Pollination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12

9. Caring For Your Plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 13

10. Cleaning Your System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15

11. How To Grow Strawberries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15

12. Questions from Reddit Users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 16

13. The Present and Future Applications for Hydroponics . . . . . . . Page 17

3.
WHAT IS HYDROPONICS?
In a broad sense, hydroponics means growing
plants without the use of soil. Hence it can
also be called “soilless culture”. What does
soil do? Soil is responsible for providing the
supply of water, essential nutrients, oxygen,
as well as supporting the plant’s root system.
With those things removed, we must create
a way to substitute them. Hydroponic plants
are fed directly with the same minerals that
healthy organic soil produces. The difference
between hydroponic and soil cultivation
is that in hydroponics we add exactly the
correct amounts in the optimum ratios of
each element so that the plant growth is not
restricted as it might be in soil when some of
the essential elements may not be at optimal
levels.
The products we grow are nutritious and
free of pesticides. Hydroponic tomatoes and
peppers have been reported to have more
than a 50% increase in vitamin and mineral
content when compared to vegetables
grown “traditionally”. Plants love to grow in
hydroponics because their roots don’t have
to push through heavy soil to compete for
nutrients. They often grow faster, ripen earlier,
and can give up to ten times the yield of soil-
grown plants.

Plants require 13 essential elements for their

growth. In hydroponics, they are all added in
the nutrient solution. In addition to these, they
utilize carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen which
come from the water and the atmosphere.
The 13 essential elements are categorized in 2
groups:

1. Those needed in relatively large

amounts (macroelemements). These
include nitrogen, phosphorous,
potassium, calcium, magnesium, and
sulfur

2. Those consumed in relatively small

amounts (trace elements) These are
iron, manganese, copper, boron, zinc,
molybdenum, and chlorine.

4.
TO BUY OR TO BUILD?
I am an avid homebrewer. I enjoy creating
not only beer recipes, but also kegerators,
fermentation chambers, and unique brewing
gadgets. There is a lot of symbiosis with
these two hobbies. There are no limits to
the inventiveness of the builder or even
the consumer when looking at hydroponic
systems. Even the most knowledgeable user
is constantly trying new methods, different
nutrients, different lights, and different varieties
AN EXAMPLE OF A HOME BUILT SYSTEM
of plant life.

However, it is important to remember that

hydroponics is more a science than an art and
there is a considerable amount of knowledge
that must be acquired. There are numerous
hydroponic systems that you can grow your
veggies and herbs in. Some systems favor
certain vegetables whereas some vegetables
won’t grow at all in some growing systems. For
that reason, I usually suggest a manufactured
system to the novice hobbyist. If I am getting
poor growth or algae or spots on my
tomatoes then I want to know it’s because If I am getting poor growth or
of something that I did incorrectly. I want to
remove the doubt of having a poor growing algae or spots on my tomatoes then
system. I don’t want that to even be a factor.
There is nothing more unfortunate than losing I want to know it’s because of
an enthusiastic “newbie” due to problems
that might have been solved by starting with
something that I did incorrectly.
a manufactured system. Using a manufactured I want to remove the doubt of
system will assist you in learning about
hydroponics and should help with getting early having a poor growing system.
results.

5.
You’re not going to listen to me, are you?
Alright, I’ll give you a brief overview of some
of the questions you should address as well
as a very general idea of an “introductory
system”. You need a structure that permits
support for the root system and a method
of supplying nutrient and aeration to your
plants. Your container needs to be waterproof
and you need to have some kind of growing
medium or aggregate which will support the
roots. The seeds or young plants will be placed
into the aggregate. Examples like perlite,
vermiculite, lava stones, etc. must perform the
two functions of support and aeration and so
the lighter and more porous it is, the better.
Then you pour a nutrient solution over the
aggregate to feed the plants. Hopefully you can
see how important an efficient grow system
is. Click here for a great starter setup. Did
you know that there are numerous nutrients
that are suited specifically for the various plant
stages of growth, particularly for the initial
Bubble
Flow
Buckets
vegetative growth state, followed by bloom
and ripening stage formulations to promote
flowering and fruit production? But, how much
nutrient should I add and how often? And how
about that pesky problem of properly aerating
the roots? Roots can only remain submerged
in the nutrient solution for a few hours
without air before they begin to suffer.
So if I was going to make my own introductory
hydroponic system, I would us an old
aquarium. It’s important to use a good strong
net and a very light growing medium. The net
would hang on top of the aquarium letting the
plants soak in the nutrient. The aquarium pump
can aerate the water but you’d want to cover
the outside of the tank with dark material to
keep out the light. I am not addressing lighting
yet and so this basic system would probably
get you some vegetables growing, but drainage
would be something that would have to be
addressed.
6.
DIFFERENT HYDROPONIC SYSTEMS
When choosing what sort of hydroponic The Ebb and Flow Water Culture System is
system you want to invest some money basically a subirrigation method. This system
and time into, you’ll need to ask yourself a floods the plant roots from below and then
couple of questions. What crops do you want drains back to a nutrient reservoir. This is not
to grow? How many plants of each crop? a continuous flow system as is the NFT, but
What grow area do you have? I will give operates on 4-8 cycles per day depending
you examples of 3 different systems. Most upon environmental conditions and plant
hydroponic gardeners have used at least one growth. A submersible pump in a reservoir
of these (NFT and Ebb and Flow are much below periodically floods a bedding tray
more popular than Aeroponics.) aerating the plant roots as the solution enters
and drains back to the reservoir and often
NFT is a very popular water culture system.
operates on a timer.
The principle of NFT is to have a shallow flow
of water under the roots. The flow must be Along with NFT, Aeroponics is an example of
constant and thin to oxygenate the roots of true hydroponics. Plant roots are suspended
the plants. Ideally, the upper portion of the into a closed dark chamber in which jets of
root mat that forms in the channel should be nutrient solution are periodically sprayed over
above the water level and exposed to air at them to maintain 100% relative humidity.
100% relative humidity. As a root mat forms
For examples of some of the systems that we
in the NFT channel, a “damming” effect of the
sell, please click here.
root mat can lead to stagnation of the nutrient
solution with regions of low dissolved oxygen.
To keep the flow of the solution from getting
stagnant use a slope of at least 2% or up to
4% with the NFT channels. You can also use an
air pump with air stones in your nutrient tank
to enhance the dissolved oxygen level of the
solution. Another idea is to use a Styrofoam
cover to support the crowns of the plant as
long as the roots are kept away from the light
and suspended in the liquid medium. These
factors are important in the design or choice
of an NFT system. Basil and lettuce will grow
very well in an NFT system.

7.
SOWING THE SEEDS AND MEDIA
The best method of starting your plants is
from seed (most of the time). You should use
those varieties that have been proven to grow
best under hydroponic culture. Feel free to
test out different types of seeds. Base your
seeds on your growing conditions and what
kind of product you want. Growing midget
seed varieties in particular can be an exciting
and fun-filled part of hydroponic growing.
Many of these are well suited to being grown
indoors. There are three basic types: a small
plant that produces normal fruit, a standard-
sized plant that produces small fruit, and a
small plant that produces small fruit.
For my money,
You’ll want to be sure to ask for seed varieties
suited for home growing. Commercial seed
rockwool and coco
varieties have been bred for toughness and
long shelf life in the supermarket. The seeds
you’ll use for hydroponics can be more fragile
coir are the best
and tasty. Also, pick “smart” seeds. It’s easier to
maintain a dwarf or bush tomato than a vine
substrates to use.
type. Also, leaf lettuce yields a high volume of
leaves in a few weeks while head lettuce takes
a bit longer.

There are many different media that can be

used to sow your seeds. The medium must
be sterile, have good water retention, but
not excessive, good oxygenation for roots,
and retain its structural integrity so as not to
compact resulting in insufficient oxygen for the
roots of plants. The nature of the hydroponic
culture system will determine what medium is
best to use. For example, if you’re growing

8.
lettuce in a floating system, you need to use
a growing cube that will not fall apart when
placing it on the Styrofoam boards. I believe
rockwool are the best growing cubes and
blocks. Many people also consider coco coir
to be a wonderful substrate. Rockwool has
very good physical properties of drainage,
aeration, water retention, structural integrity,
and sterility. They also stay together well when
harvesting the plants. I have had most success
using rockwool cubes when growing tomatoes,
cucumbers, peppers, lettuce, and herbs. These
cubes have small half inch holes for placing
your seeds. You’ll want to soak the rockwoll
prior to sowing the seeds. Once wet, sow
the seeds directly into the holes of the cubes.
Place the cube pads in flats and then soak
them thoroughly with water. If the seed is fairly
new and the viability is strong, sow one seed
per cube with the exception of herbs (not
basil), which you can sow 8-10 seeds per cube.
Basil should be seeded about 4-5 per cube.
Always sow one seed of tomatoes, peppers,
or cucumbers per cube and water the cubes
several times a day. In some cases you can
seed directly into the hydroponic system, but
generally it’s better to transplant seedlings
into the hydroponic system. This allows you
to pick the healthiest seedlings. Tomatoes,
peppers, and cucumbers (vine crops) are
transplanted into 4-inch rockwool blocks after
the seedlings grow to a specific age in the
cubes. I have seen various totals as to when
people should transplant the seedlings into
the final production stage. I will give you mine.
For tomatoes, I transplant after 25 days. I’ve
had some variation on that, but you want
to make sure you have 3 sets of true leaves
before transplanting. Peppers after 28 days, and
cucumbers after 7 days. Lettuce should have
at least 4-6 true leaves before transplanting
to the hydroponic system. It is so important
to keep this in mind: When transplanting it
is incredibly important to be gentle with the
roots.
9.
PROPER LIGHTING
I think it’s important to mention that I’ve seen
people grow just about everything with the
most basic of lighting setups. Their systems
aren’t as efficient as they could be. They aren’t
yielding what they possibly could, but they
don’t care.They’re still growing veggies (or
medicinal products) hydroponically. So, I’ll give
you some “ideal situations”, but if you need
to save money then there are much cheaper
alternatives.
Lighting for plant growth has become very
sophisticated. Most lights sold today are of the
high-intensity discharge (HID) type. There are
2 types of lights: high-pressure sodium (HPS)
and metal halide (MH). Usually a combination
of both gives best results. I have been told that
MH light has a wider spectrum and therefore
is more useful for indoors where no natural
sunlight is present. HPS lights are better to
supplement sunlight to extend the day length
or to increase intensity during cloudy periods.
Some manufacturers now make a “conversion
lamp” which permits conversion from HPS
to MH. Lately the compact fluorescent lights
have been emphasized to save electrical
consumption. You can get fluorescent lamps
in red, blue, and dual spectrum. The red lamps
are recommended for flower production
and the blue for vegetative growing, whereas
the mixed spectrum is for plants from start
to finish. These lights are placed in highly
reflective textured aluminum reflectors to give
maximum reflection and diffusion of the light.
Today, new LED lights are being promoted for
their low consumption of power. There are a
number of types where the blue and red can
be mixed at varying percentages in a reflector
unit to provide the best light for specific crops.
They are flexible to mix and match different
colored lamps to give the desired spectrum for
growing.
Most vegetable crops, including herbs, need 50
to 70 watts of light per square foot of growing
area. I have always seen people fruiting
vegetables like a lot of light, so approach
the higher figure for them. I have found that
using jack chains to support the lights which
allows you to change their position as the
plants grow. Initially, keep the light about 3 feet
above to get proper lighting. Then lower the
light about a foot a week until it is about 1
foot above the plants as they grow upward.
Then keep moving the light up several times
a week in increments of 6 inches as the plants
grows 6 inches. Use a fan to move the hot
air across the leaf surface, but don’t point the
fan right at the plants. If the leaf temperature
goes above 85°F, then the plant can’t carry
out photosynthesis to any great extent. You
can make more efficient use of the light in
the plant canopy by using a reflector. Lastly,
illuminate your plants 16-18 hours a day (14-
16 hours a day for seedlings). An occasional
night with the lights on is less harmful than a
day with them off. Nothing works better than
a timer.
Click here to read about 3 lights that we use
and promote.
10.
OPTIMAL TEMPERATURES
AND CONDITIONS
It is important to have the day and night I also want to mention carbon dioxide.
variance since during the day they manufacture I hesitate to use the word “all” because I
energy and at night they assimilate it and frankly can’t claim to know that this next
grow. You can’t send the plants confusing statement is true. However, I’m very very
signals. Tomatoes prefer 77-79°F during very confident when I say that all commercial
germination. As they grow you can lower growers use carbon dioxide enrichment to
the day temperature to 73°F and the night increase productivity by up to 20%. (It’s the
temperature to 68°F. Cucumbers prefer a gas required for photosynthesis). Although
slightly higher temperature. They take about 2 such a system is not critical for an indoor
days to germinate under a day temperature grower, it will increase your yield. The ambient
of 79°F and night temperature of 70°F. Upon level of CO2 is about 300ppm. In your house
transplanting to growing blocks the temps are it probably is lower than that. Research has
identical to the tomatoes’ ideal temperature found that a level between 800 and 1200 ppm
which is a day temp of 73°F and night temp is optimum for most plants.
of 68°F. Peppers germinate between 77°F and
Click here to find out how to increase your
79°F. As seedlings emerge, you should lower
CO2 levels.
the temp to 72°F to 74°F. After transplanting,
use the same temp regime as tomatoes and
cucumbers. Lettuce germinates well under
temperatures of 59°F to 68°F. Seedlings can
be grown in temps of a few degrees lower
than for tomatoes, but if you’re growing other
seedlings in the same area use the tomato
temp range for best results for all seedlings.
Lastly, herbs have an ideal range of 65°F to
75°F. They are capable of withstanding a broad
range of temps, but they do their best at
similar range to that of tomatoes.

11.
WATER ANALYSIS/P H
Like I said earlier, I like to brew my own beer.
Everyone knows the importance of water
in beer and so one of the first things I did
when I began brewing was to request a water
analysis. I wanted to know what I was working
with. By this point, you should understand
how important water is with your hydroponic
plants as well. You should be able to contact
your local Public Works Department or Ag
Department to get the results. Knowing the
makeup of your water is incredibly important
if you are going to make your own nutrients
(as opposed to simply purchasing them). You
would have to adjust your formulations for the
presence of any elements in your water to get
the “recipe” down correctly.
It is important to determine the pH level of
water before any nutrients are added. What
is pH? The pH scale measures the relative
acidity or alkalinity of a solution or medium.
Most plants prefer a slightly acidic condition
between 5.8 and 6.5. Most herbs like 5.6 to
7.0 and growing a combination of vegetables
and herbs try to maintain a 6.0 to 6.5 range.
The pH affects the plants’ ability to take up its
essential elements from the nutrient solution.
My preference is to use good pH indicator
paper that has a range between 4.0 and 7.0.
To adjust the pH, you can purchase dilute
solutions that are safe to handle. Once you
determine the pH level of the water prior to
any nutrients, make adjustments if necessary,
and then check the level of the nutrient
periodically. If necessary, adjust again after
adding the nutrient.
For a very high-tech instrument that
measures pH, conductivity, and temperature
then click here.
POLLINATION
Most flowering types of vegetables require
some kind of pollination by you when you
grow indoors. Tomatoes are capable of
pollinating themselves because the flowers
contain both male and female parts, but
you can improve their pollination by doing
it yourself. The simplest method is to use an
electric toothbrush. For 3-4 seconds hold the
vibrating toothbrush on the cluster of flowers
and watch that the entire cluster move at high
speed. This vibration will release the pollen
which can be seen as a fine yellow powder.
An artist’s brush can work by swabbing the
cone. You will be able to determine whether
your pollination is successful within about a
week as small beadlike fruit will start to form.
To assist the shift from vegetative to generative
state, pollinate every day as the first 3 flower
clusters form. Once these first three clusters
have set fruit the plant will become more
generative in its growth phase. Peppers and
eggplants should also be pollinated but with
less vigor to avoid breaking the flowers.
12.
CARING FOR YOUR PLANTS
Vine plants like tomatoes, peppers, and
cucumbers must be trained vertically to
best utilize the growing area in your room.
I use plastic string to support the plants to
either a series of hooks or a support wire
above. Tomatoes and peppers will have to
be lowered as they approach the ceiling. THE BEST HYDROPONIC EQUIPMENT
Indoors you will probably carry your plants for
PRODUCES THE BEST PLANTS
about 6 to 7 months from seeding. I have had
tomatoes over a period of 6-7 months grow
a length of about 11 to 12 feet. Begin stringing
your plants soon after transplanting to prevent
them from falling over.
Another way to care for your plants is to
grow certain ones together. I have found
that it’s best to grow lettuce and herbs in a
separate system from cucumbers, tomatoes, CLONING SYSTEMS
and peppers. The main reason for growing
the lettuce and herbs separately is that they
are very low in form and would not grow
well under vine crops when your lights are
situated near the ceiling. Also, the lettuce is on
a very short cropping cycle (30-40 days) after
transplanting, whereas the vine crops continue
growing for up to 6 months or longer. LEAF TRIMMERS
Herbs, with the exception of basil grow fairly
slowly initially. They take about 3-4 months to
get well established. Once they are growing
vigorously, you can harvest them every day.
They will continue to grow for a full year. Basil
needs about 6 weeks to get well established.
By keeping the basil well pruned from the
beginning, the plants will last up to 3-4 months GROW TENTS
or slightly longer.

13.
CLEANING YOUR SYSTEM
Quality control and quality assurance have
the upmost importance when dealing with
hydroponics and cleanliness. Just because you
might be growing indoors does not mean that
you won’t get pests. The Whitefly, aphids, and
other pests can be a nuisance. I have found
Whiteflies to be the most common pests of
tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and lettuce.
Unless you let your plants get out of control
then you probably won’t see many pests.
You’ll also want to remove dead leaves before
they rot. Once a year or after every crop,
clean out your system and either sterilize
the growing medium or replace it. Typically,
I feel it’s best to totally replace the medium
since the amount needed is fairly small and
inexpensive. If you want to sterilize the
medium then you’ll probably sterilize it in the
oven. Your system should be flushed every 30
days to remove accumulated mineral hardness
left by water additions. Flushing is done with
plain water. Let the water stand for about an
hour and then drain away. The plants will be
fine. If you are flushing the system because
of a nutrient oversupply, operate the planter
on plain water for a week and only then
begin a nutrient solution again. Otherwise,
you should return to a nutrient solution right
away. Record everything you do from day to
day for each planter you have. Record the
pH when checked, list the nutrient solution
added, the amount of light, when seeded, when
transplanted, first fruit, first harvest and the
amount of harvest.
When you need to sterilize the entire unit,
use a 10% bleach solution. Run the solution
through the system to clean the irrigation lines.
Let it sit in the lines for 24 hours. Then rinse
with fresh, clean water several times.
14.
HOW TO GROW STRAWBERRIES
I wanted to give strawberries their own
section because they are handled differently
from the other hydroponic vegetables and
herbs and also because I really like them. I’m
not likely to bite into a tomato or a cucumber
right off the vine, but I love strawberries. The
first thing to note is that if you wish to grow
strawberries you need to purchase plants. If
you purchase actively growing bare-root plants,
they will produce in about 6 weeks from
transplanting. It is best to remove all flowers
for the first 3 weeks to allow the plants to get
established. You’ll also want to make sure you
soak the roots if they were planted in any soil
before you transplant them into your system.
Like all the other growing plants, it’s important
to use the correct growing system. The last few
years I have built a cascade NFT system with
PVC piping. After a quick trip to Home Depot
for some 4 inch PVC, you can be growing
strawberries in your backyard. The nutrient
solution enters the high end of the slightly
sloping top pipe, exiting at the low end of that
pipe and into the high end of the next one
onto the reservoir from where it was pumped.
Each pipe is about 5 feet long. Minimum
slope of 2% is necessary to provide adequate
solution flow. As the nutrient descends down
the rows of PVC piping and drops from one
level to the next, it aerates the solution very
well. It’s important to cut out the right sized
holes in the top of the rows of PVC for the
strawberry and their media (for me, lavarock).
I cut a circular hole in the base of the 3 inch
plastic net cups and let the roots hang out and
barely touch the nutrient as it flows below.
I should mention I let water run through the
system for 3 days after I place the strawberry
plants in. I want to get rid of the soil before I
add the nutrients. Once nutrients are added, I
let that mixture go for a few weeks and then
drain and replace the mixture.
15.
QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY
REDDIT USERS
Question - How often should I completely
change the water?
Your system should be flushed with plain
water every 30 days. Let the water stand
for about an hour and then drain away. You
can leave the plants in there while you’re
doing this. If you are flushing the system
because of a nutrient oversupply, operate
the planter on plain water for a week and
then begin a nutrient solution again. If you
are just flushing the system because the 30 I’m getting lousy seedlings.
days are up, then you should return to a What am I doing wrong?
nutrient solution right away.
It could be your lighting (or lack thereof).
I have found that a bright light close to the flat
Do I really have to buy a fancy grow light, often leads to better seedlings. A fluorescent
or can I get something with high lumens light just a couple inches above the plants will
from Lowes? What are the tradeoffs if I give you thicker and shorter seedlings.
do that?
This answer just comes down to money. A
good friend of mine has a hydroponic system
and uses it to grow his medical marijuana. He
has barely invested any money in lights. He
has found that he gets a good yield by using
inexpensive T8 lights. I have always leaned
towards the side of using better lights, because
like I mentioned in the “To Build or Not To
Build” section, I didn’t want to have a low yield
and then become unmotivated and quit. I think
my info in the section on “Proper Lighting”
should be helpful and guide most people in
the right direction.

16.

THE PRESENT AND FUTURE
OF HYDROPONICS
There are literally tons of vegetables grown
hydroponically and sold around the world.
There is grass being hydroponically grown
that contains more vitamins and nutrients
for our cattle to eat. Vegetables for human
consumption are growing not only quicker
and with less water, but also on much smaller
parcels of land when compared to soil-based
vegetables. It’s easy to see how hydroponics
could help an area that doesn’t support
“normal” food growth, but think about a
beautiful place like Hawaii. There is not a
lot of available land on the islands for food
production and they have about 8 million
tourists a year. Lots of mouths to feed + not
much land for food production = lots of food
that needs to be imported. Hydroponics is
relevant in many different ways.
Regarding the future of the technology…
literally the sky is the limit. I’ve read reports
about growing food in space so they can
feed astronauts. I also read a fascinating
article about pairing desalination facilities with
hydroponic facilities so crops can be grown
using sea/salt water. (A desalination plant
removes salt and impurities from sea/ocean
water and converts it to drinkable water.)
Commercial hydroponics will continue to
increase and the research on nutrients and
advanced systems will not only help the larger
companies, but the hobbyists like you and me.
Hydroponics can be practical for many
different system designs from sophisticated,
automated ones to simple, manual ones.
You do not need to be a rocket scientist to
successfully grow hydroponically; just be able
to follow instructions to best achieve the
results you want for your particular level of
growing.
17.
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