Dear KooBee,
That’s a pretty all-encompassing question! The first thing you need to know is precisely what „hydroponics“ is: the growing of plants without soil or soilless mix to hold the roots. That means your medium can be rockwool, expanded clay pellets, coco coir or even no medium at all, such as in aeroponics or deep-water culture (DWC), where the roots dangle in an oxygenated nutrient solution. You still have many choices, such as a recirculating system or a drain-to-waste one. The former relies on a reservoir and pump that feeds your plants and allows all excess solution to return to the reservoir for future use. Tho latter consists of a system in which nutrient solution is discarded alter ono use. There are several types of recirculating hydroponic growing as welt, Nutrient-film technique (NFT) bathes the roots in a shallow stream of solution, while a drip-emitter system, as I discussed in an earlier question, feeds the plants individually using tubing placed at the foot of each plant. The ebb-and-flow (or flood-and-drain) system utilizes a timer and pump to flood the grow tray with nutrient solution at regular intervals and then returns the solution back to the reservoir. The most important things to remember about hydroponic growing are the temperature, the ppm (parts per million) level of minerals and salt elements in the water, and the pH of the nutrient solution, Reservoir temps should never go below 65°F or above 75°F, and you’ll need a heater, a chiller and a regulator to control this. Also, you must have a ppm and pH meter and controller in order to maintain the proper balance in your plant food.
Dear KooBee,
That’s a pretty all-encompassing question! The first thing you need to know is precisely what „hydroponics“ is: the growing of plants without soil or soilless mix to hold the roots. That means your medium can be rockwool, expanded clay pellets, coco coir or even no medium at all, such as in aeroponics or deep-water culture (DWC), where the roots dangle in an oxygenated nutrient solution. You still have many choices, such as a recirculating system or a drain-to-waste one. The former relies on a reservoir and pump that feeds your plants and allows all excess solution to return to the reservoir for future use. Tho latter consists of a system in which nutrient solution is discarded alter ono use. There are several types of recirculating hydroponic growing as welt, Nutrient-film technique (NFT) bathes the roots in a shallow stream of solution, while a drip-emitter system, as I discussed in an earlier question, feeds the plants individually using tubing placed at the foot of each plant. The ebb-and-flow (or flood-and-drain) system utilizes a timer and pump to flood the grow tray with nutrient solution at regular intervals and then returns the solution back to the reservoir. The most important things to remember about hydroponic growing are the temperature, the ppm (parts per million) level of minerals and salt elements in the water, and the pH of the nutrient solution, Reservoir temps should never go below 65°F or above 75°F, and you’ll need a heater, a chiller and a regulator to control this. Also, you must have a ppm and pH meter and controller in order to maintain the proper balance in your plant food.
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