The Wonderful World of Growing

Hydroponics – Growing of plants without soil  Nutrients are delivered to the plant in an aqueous solution  The scope of gardening is expanded  Hydroponics takes place on every continent in some form for food or commercial use

Advantages  Higher crop yield  Less water required  Possibility to grow crops outside of climate  No need for crop rotation  Continual growth throughout the year  Little risk of weeds or parasites

Disadvantages  Cost (initial cost)  Higher maintenance (constant supervision, pH testing, lighting adjustments)  Requires specialized knowledge and equipment

Six Systems of Hydroponics  Ebb and Flow  Nutrient Film Technique (NFT)  Aeropnic  Water Culture  Wick  Drip

Wick System  Wicks anchored in a medium stretch down to a reservoir and draw solution upward to reach the roots Disadvantage  Plants don’t grow to full maturity because of limited aeration and root volume

Nutrient Film Technique (NFT)  NFT uses little or no medium and uses a continuous solution flow over the roots  Can produce large-scale crops cheaply in parts of the world where soil quality is poor  NFT can produce 106 times more lettuce annually on a 2.5 acre operation than by conventional farming

NFT Cont.  The greatest problem facing NFT has been root die back caused by inadequate oxygen in the area around the root system  This causes water stress which causes wilting and blossom end rot of fruit crops such as tomatoes  This system is susceptible to equipment failure and problems arise due to support of the plant

Ebb and Flow  The most popular system due to its low maintenance and low cost  Utilizes a growing bed full of medium that is flooded with solution and allowed to drain  Best suited for growing seedlings, transplants, and ornamental potted plants

Ebb and Flow Cont.  There is little risk of equipment failure because there is a growing medium that retains water and allows oxygen to get to the roots  Ebb & Flow systems allow for uniform fill and complete drainage during the irrigation cycle thus leading to uniformity in plant growth  This type of system can be made automatic with the use of computers

Drip System  Drip systems use pumps to carry the solution to the medium, and gravity to drain it back to a reservoir  These are reliable, require low maintenance and can withstand short term equipment failure because of the growing medium  They are suitable for large scale growing of all types of plants

Drip System Cont.  A disadvantage of the drip system is that it is expensive and difficult to set up  Drip systems can use a variety of growing mediums and are available in a wide range of configurations

Aeroponics  Uses sprayers to bathe the roots with a nutrient-oxygen mist  Plants are artificially suspended  Used most widely in lab studies, but not for large-scale commercial use due to expense of setup and maintenance

Aeroponics Cont.  NASA has experimented with the combination of Aeroponics and NFT in order to conserve nutrients for the use of hydroponics in space  The chief advantage of this type of system is efficient utilization of greenhouse space by arranging the plants vertically  A disadvantage of Aeroponics is regulating the consistency of the sprayers to assure constant nutrient flow

Nutrients Solutions  The key to success of a hydroponics system  Contains various combos of nutrients specifically engineered to mimic those in soil  Made up of: Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, Sulfur, Iron, Manganese, Zinc, Boron, and Copper

Nutrients Solutions Cont.  Nitrogen – Production of leaves and growth of stem  Phosphorous – Development of flowers, fruits, leaves and stems and growth of roots  Calcium – Spurs root growth and helps plant absorb potassium  Magnesium – Helps distribute phosphorous throughout the plant

Nutrients Solutions Cont.  Sulfur – Heightens the effectiveness of phosphorous and used in the production of energy  Iron – Important in the production of chlorophyll  Manganese – Aids in the absorption of nitrogen  Zinc – Necessary in the transfer of energy  Copper – Needed in the production of chlorophyll

pH Values  The acidity or alkalinity of the nutrient solution  pH readings are from acidic, 7 neutral, 8-14 alkaline  The recommended pH is between 6-6.5

pH Value Affects  Affected by many factors  Temperature  Amount of light  Evaporation  Type of plant  Amount of nutrients  Checking the pH level of the solution is vital to healthy plant growth

Adjusting pH Level  Adjusting the pH level of the nutrient solution can be done simply  Add baking soda to neutralize an acidic solution  Add white vinegar to neutralize a basic solution

Resources/Bibliography  Boak, Robert. "Hydroponics" PowerShow. PowerShow, n.d. Web. 15 Feb  Dayton, Marisol. "An Overview on Types of Hydroponic Systems." Helium. Helium, 25 July Web. 15 Feb  "Sustainable Farming - Types of Hydroponic Systems." HubPages. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb