Showing posts with label Hydroponic. Show all posts

Certain forward-thinking people square measure reinventing farming as we all know it. Indoor, organic urban farms growing food vertically victimization husbandry and aquaponic principles, square measure maturation round the country. The push for different ways of raising food follow partially, on the heels of native governments outlawing owners from growing vegetable gardens in their yards, and forcing folks to tear out existing, healthy gardens. supplying the wheels of amendment square measure the county, state and central wittingly making an attempt to destroy the organic phenomenon with chemtrails, pesticides, growth hormones and GMOs, as they alter the terribly molecular nature of our food. These actions move the guts, stimulate rage, emotion and worry, and force humans to vary to survive or die.

grow your hanging gardens of BabylonLooking for alternative routes to feed themselves and also the community, massive and little different husbandry ventures square measure shooting up all over. Smaller ventures like the Urban Hydro Project in state capital, Tennessee is that the farm-child of Jeffery Orkin; and his efforts square measure paying off. A demand community support in late 2012 raised over $3,300 in donations, enough cash for Orkin to shop for materials to increase his fledgling indoor organic garden on the highest floor of a domicile building in state capital. though the Urban Hydro Project has solely a hundred thirty five sq. feet of floor house, the space has twelve foot ceilings, and Orkin plans to plant to the ceiling. lovely organic vegetables square measure mature victimization farming, wherever no soil is employed. Orkin says this is often a additional economical methodology of production, and one that produces higher yields and higher tasting organic food year spherical.

While the Urban Hydro Project continues to expand and thrive in state capital, FarmedHere up up outside of Chicago and claims the respect of being the most important indoor vertical farm within the U.S.. based by Jolanta Hardej, it's placed in a very Brobdingnagian ninety,000 square measure abandoned warehouse in Bedford Park, Illinois. Hardej had the vision as so much back as 2008 to grow contemporary, organic manufacture victimization aquaponic techniques, and no soil. Like Orkin, Hardej says the vegetables square measure higher tasting than once historically mature. Plants at FarmedHere square measure mature in multiple stacked levels and fed by mineral-rich water circulated throughout the system from fish tanks containing hormone-free genus Tilapia fish.

FarmedeHere is trying to provide over a million pounds of contemporary, organic foliate greens, freed from chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, and GMOs.

Indoor farming provides property choices
As additional tight government rules square measure place in situ dominant individual freedoms, and larger efforts square measure created to change the essence of food by companies like Monsanto, the provision of organic, life-staining foods can diminish. because the air and land square measure poisoned chemically and different corrupting parts in a trial to marginalise life, different means that of growing food are going to be required for people who square measure willing to fight to survive the system.

· Indoor husbandry comes like these et al round the country manufacture organic food year spherical, beneath excellent temperature, wetness and lighting conditions

· because of the controlled growing atmosphere, indoor farms offer property agriculture for all -- the house gardener, native tailgate markets, and huge food chains such Whole Foods, inexperienced Grocery, and different massive grocery chains tightened organic foods

· Growing manufacture with farming is feasible for individual owners by fixing a special growing station in their homes, garages or sheds. Some vertical growing instrumentality is moveable and may be captive outside in hotter weather if desired.

· Indoor vertical farming incorporates a little footprint, permitting people to grow food victimization aquaponics or farming off from curious government eyes. in addition, little or massive indoor community gardens square measure attainable in smaller-sized buildings, allowing teams to make gardens, purchase provides and share contemporary vegetables along.

Sources for this article include:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com
http://www.kickstarter.com
http://www.motherearthnews.com
http://www.ugrosystems.com/
http://www.hgtv.com

It's very straightforward to grow powerful medicines which will lower your sterol, shield your heart, scale back your risk of upset, enhance system perform, and shield you from polygenic disease and lots of different chronic diseases. each plant could be a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant provided naturally. It's sort of a multi-million dollar pharmaceutical laboratory that takes raw materials and converts them into healing medicines. It will this freed from charge, while not asking something back from you aside from a bit little bit of care, some water, and a few daylight.
If you're thinking that regarding however plants operate, they are quite exceptional producing engines. They take nutrients out of the soil, greenhouse gas out of the air, water, and photons from daylight. Then, through a fancy system of metabolism and chemical change, plants manage to convert those components into healing phytonutrients, together with vitamins, enzymes, wholesome oils, fiber, proteins, and sophisticated carbohydrates. and they turn out all of those fantastic phytochemicals that we're currently learning additional regarding in terms of preventing, and even reversing, chronic diseases like cancer.

Plants offer you an additional factor, too: the energy of life. this can be another variety of nutrition, that I decision "vibrational nutrition." It's one thing that you simply cannot get from synthesized pills or factory-made foods. you'll be able to solely dig from plants, as a result of it's to try and do with the energy of living, respiration organisms.

grow your own pharmaceuticalsFor nearly each chronic unwellness, there's a plant which will treat it. area unit you battling cancer? Grow yourself some garlic, onions, and broccoli. area unit you battling high cholesterol? Grow and eat some blueberries. area unit you littered with macular degeneration? you'll be able to grow a good form of berries. If you are within the right climate, you'll be able to grow nut trees that offer wholesome oils right off the tree. In fact, despite what style of climate you are in, there area unit plants as healing drugs which will be grownup in your region, whether or not you are within the nice white north, or the jungles of Central America. whether or not you are in a very dry desert climate, the plains, forest, rainforest, swampland, the icy north, the mountain range, or the Smoky Mountains, there area unit plants you'll be able to grow which will facilitate heal you.

This is one in every of the most areas of analysis on that i am focusing without delay. i am performing on finding new ways in which for individuals to additional simply grow plants that have a healing potential. i might wish to share with you what I've learned to date, so invite you to remain up-to-date, as a result of there is a ton additional sensible info coming near this subject. One goal I actually have is to make or promote some type of device which will perform as a home pharmaceutical manufacturing plant, with which individuals will plant seeds and primarily get pleasure from a inactive operation that grows these plants while not requiring a lot of effort on their half.

It's quite silly to pay $100 per pill to a pharma once you will grow more practical and safer prescribed drugs right in your own residence, balcony, or curtilage. In fact, the word "pharmaceutical" suggests that "plant drugs." The word "pharma" has identical root utilized in the word "farming," after all. therefore medicines extremely do have their origins in plants. It's solely through the atrocious politics of pharmaceutical corporations these days that folks have forgotten the plant origins of drugs. What i am hoping to try and do is assist you come back to to the plants, as a result of the plants have the healing characteristics that we want.

For widespread adoption, we want one thing that works while not soil. Soil works nice for the outside, however if you actually desire a system that works for people that do not have yards, soil is clearly not the thanks to go. There area unit currently plant growing technologies accessible that grow plants much more with efficiency with much better yields than with soil. they are not essentially new, though there area unit some new technologies rising in these fields. i am talking regarding tank farming and aeroponics. tank farming has been around for quite an whereas. it's the growing of plants in nutrient solutions that haven't any soil. Basically, you are exposing the plant roots to liquids containing the nutrients required to grow. this can be achieved through Associate in Nursing ebb-and-flow agriculture system, or another agriculture configuration.

You may be shocked to be told that you simply will grow plants while not soil. the fact is that the soil is simply a medium that holds nutrients for the plants. therefore if you get obviate the soil, however still offer the nutrients to the plant roots, they are going to be simply fine. In fact, you'll be able to increase yields through this method versus growing them in soil. I've done this myself in several experiments, within which I've planted identical plants in soil vs. a agriculture system. I actually have found a lot of quicker growth and bigger yields in a very agriculture system. agriculture systems do need electricity, and that they take some effort to be told the way to operate properly. however they will be terribly profitable. they are additionally much more moveable than growing plants in soil, as a result of it's easier to maneuver a receptacle, a timer, and a pump than it's to maneuver four hundred lbs of soil.

If you would like to spice up yields on the far side those achieved by agriculture systems, a stronger system to use is Associate in Nursing aeroponic system. this can be what you see at the Epcot Center in American state, wherever agriculture scientists area unit victimisation this technology to grow vertical stands of plants. They basically spray the roots with a nutrient resolution on regular intervals.

Spraying the roots of a plant each quarter-hour with this nutrient resolution has benefits over the agriculture approach, as a result of you are able to make even additional expanse between the nutrients in your liquids and also the roots of the plant. In my expertise, Associate in Nursing aeroponic system produces considerably bigger yields than the agriculture system. If you're thinking that regarding what is chargeable for that increase, you understand that it is the bigger expanse of the smaller droplets of water being sprayed on the roots.

You can purchase home-built aeroponic systems on the web. None of them area unit extremely elegant, however they work, and that they do turn out outstanding plant yields. Right now, i am growing tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, herbs, strawberries and even watermelons on aeroponic systems. Plant growth is extremely aggressive, though i'm having some challenges obtaining the tomato plants to fruit (it's in all probability simply a nutrient oversight on my half, thanks to my relative ignorance in plant chemistry).

When i am able to retire these plants for the season, i am going to snap some photos of the foundation mass to indicate you simply however effectively aeroponic growth systems are often. you will be completely astonied at however quickly and sharply these plant root networks will grow.

The bottom line here is that i feel home-grown plants area unit aiming to create an enormous comeback within the years ahead, and we're aiming to see nutrient-rich styles of plants (like red carrots with lycopene) that treat and forestall chronic unwellness, in addition to new technologies that permit hands-free cultivation of healing plants. After all, World Health Organization has to build a $100 million drug manufacturing plant once nature will manufacture all the medication you wish for the value of one or two of seeds? I say, let nature build the medicines.

Overview:

WWF-Pakistan in collaboration with Horlicks Pakistan organised a fun-filled Nature Carnival at PAF Museum. The Nature Carnival attracted up to 30,000 individuals from various walks of life.
There were over 150 stalls set-up by schools, colleges and universities. The main competition revolved around 3D models set up by students of schools and universities. Expert judges including foresters, conservationists, and environmental historians amongst others graded the models.
Families, corporate and academia representatives including principals attended the carnival. Participants were engaged in eco-friendly games, puppet shows, lucky draw and other activities set up by WWF-Pakistan including pin the tail on the snow leopard and thematic art competitions.
Chief Guest at the event was famous Pakistani drama and film actress Atiqa Odho. She said that each and every one of us should start taking care of the things we need for our survival including forests, water and all our natural resources so that we can give a thriving planet to our children and their children.

DAAM win 3rd Position in Pakistan Nature Carnival at PAF museum:

Department of Agriculture and Agribusiness Management (DAAM) win third position under university category, DAAM represent Hydroponics model system for vegetable and fruit cultivation, hydroponics or soil-less farming system is one of the most discuss technology around the globe, hydroponics is the only solution to fulfill the requirement of world vegetable requirements.

 DAAM win 3rd Position in Pakistan Nature Carnival at PAF museum

 DAAM win 3rd Position in Pakistan Nature Carnival at PAF museum

 DAAM win 3rd Position in Pakistan Nature Carnival at PAF museum

 DAAM win 3rd Position in Pakistan Nature Carnival at PAF museum

What is Ebb and Flow Hydroponics and How Does it WorkEbb and flow hydroponics is a method of growing plants hydroponically that is known for its reliability, simplicity of operation and low cost of investment. Pots or a flood tray are filled with a grow media such as gravel, clay pellets, lava rock etc. These do not function like soil or add nutrition to the plants but will anchor the roots and will function as a temporary reserve of water and nutrients. The hydroponic solution floods the system four to six times a day and is allowed to drain away in between flood cycles.
With this system a water tight flood tray or pot, containing either clean gravel, clay pellets or lava rock is used as the rooting medium. The system is then periodically flooded for short periods of time (5 to 15 minutes) with a nutrient solution pumped from a reservoir. By placing the reservoir below the flood tray, with a over flow drain, the nutrient solution can drain back by gravity through the pump with the same line that supplied the water and nutrients during the flood cycle. Our favorite media is lava rock with this type of system. Lava rock drains quickly and traps air and will not leave a clay residue if using clay pellets, which can clog the water pump after time.

Aeration of an ebb and flood system is one of the most important things of the system. Let me explain, when the system floods it is in a deep water culture mode. Your reservoir may contain an air delivery system such as a air stone to keep the water saturated with oxygen and eliminate a pathogen problem. During the flood cycle the oxygenated air is pumped into the tray or bucket for 5 to 15 minutes. During this 5 to 15 minute period there is no additional air and oxygen being supplied to the tray or bucket. So even though you are now in deep water culture mode your plants are not receiving the amount of air and oxygen as if they were in a deep water culture system. The reason why is a deep water culture system has air constantly pumped into the reservoir 24 hours a day in which the roots are submerged. During the ebb cycle, or draining of the tray or bucket, air is now pulled down into the grow media supplying oxygen to the plants. At this point until the next flood cycle the roots again are being deprived of fresh air and oxygen.

Drawbacks to Ebb and flood hydroponic systems:
1. Pathogens in reservoir, flood tray or pot due to stagnated water during drain time which can contaminate the entire system due to the shared water source.
2. Limited amount of oxygen available during flooding of tray or pot.
3. Limited amount of oxygen available while in the ebb or drain stage.

Is there a solution to the problem above?  Ebb and flow hydroponic system to help eliminate the problems above. By adding Air Injection Technology at the very bottom of the media in your current flood tray or pot you will eliminate the drawbacks to a ebb and flood hydroponic system. You will also increase the plants growth rate and have healthier plants. 1. Pathogens in the flood tray or pot are eliminated because there is a constant supply of oxygen 24 hours a day weather in the flood stage or drain stage. 2. Constant supply of oxygen during the flood stage just like true deep water culture. 3. During the ebb or drain stage there is constant air being delivered to the plants roots 24 hours a day weather in the flood or drain stage. This will bring your current Ebb and flow hydroponics system up to date and will allow you to take full advantage of your ebb and flood hydroponics system at minimal cost.

Growing vegetables hydroponically leads to a more expensive, but tastier veggie, cumberlink.com reports.

Hydroponic growing leads to tastier vegetablesTomatoes are the king crop in hydroponics because of the demand for them in early spring and late fall when field tomatoes aren't available. The challenge is to sell them at $2.99 per pound when field tomatoes are going for 99 cents, says Mark Toigo, 42, who has run hydroponic greenhouses for the last 15 years, among other duties, at the family-owned Toigo Orchards in Southampton Township, Cumberland County. Hydroponic grower Barb Rose, 52, co-owner of Beck-n-Rose of North Middleton Township, agrees with Toigo. She also developed a niche market in the last three years --- a few chefs at "better restaurants who care what tomatoes look and taste like," Rose says. She counts among her customers Fetter Brookside Market south of Carlisle, Mountain Lakes west of Carlisle, Oak Grove Farms of Mechanicsburg and the Butcher Shop in Chambersburg. For next season, all Beck-n-Rose produce is committed to current customers, says Rose, a former marketing manager for a start-up software company that sold last year for $40 million. "You do need to be a manager and a marketer" to be profitable, Toigo says, raising his voice above the half-dozen four-foot-wide fans that ventilate his 90- by 130-foot greenhouse off South Mountain Estates Road. He steps over piles of vines on the concrete greenhouse floor, the result of cropping the tops off tomato plants that have the last of the crop ripening on the vines. He will plant new tomato vines again in January for harvest beginning in April. Although growers would like to produce tomatoes through the winter, year-round tomato production isn't feasible this far north. They say it doesn't have the flavor of food grown in soil," says Brubeck, who sells mostly to restaurants and to some grocery stores in Cumberland, Dauphin and Lebanon counties.

Original source:
http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2005/08/07/business/busi01.txt

by Mike Adams

Hydroponics, the practice of growing plants in water instead of soil, received a giant lift from a New Delhi family that created a purely organic nutrient mix that has sustained tomatoes and Arjun.

Original source:
http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage.php?storyflag=y&leftnm=lmnu5&leftindx=5&lselect=2&chklogin=N&autono=202585

Detailshydroponic tomatoes Indian family makes a breakthrough in hydroponics

Indian family makes a breakthrough in hydroponics Indian family makes a breakthrough in hydroponicsAn Indian hobbyist has created a purely organic nutrient mixture for growing plants in water. Although it is still an evolving science, hydroponic agriculture (growing plants in water solution rather than soil) is spreading fast the world over. The nutritional requirement of the plants in this system of soilless farming is met by the nutrient mixtures, called hydroponics fertiliser mixtures, added to the water in which the plant roots are kept submerged. These mixtures are made of chemical plant nutrients. A breakthrough has now been achieved by an Indian hydroponics hobbyist in creating a purely organic nutrient mixture for growing plants in water. This wholly chemical-free plant growth solution has been tested successfully for growing several plants, including common vegetables like tomato and arbi and some high value medicinal plants like Brahmi, Arjun and Cineraria. Indeed, a good deal of research is underway in this system of soilless farming in the US and Europe but not much headway has been made anywhere in organic hydroponics. Of course, some hydroponics enthusiasts abroad have been experimenting with various kinds of organic manures and mixtures of plants, but successful and commercially viable organic hydroponics models are still not available. His daughter, Shweta Singh, a Delhi University botany student, has been assisting him in discovering and further improving the biofertiliser mixture for growing plants in ordinary water. “I will work on it for a couple of years more before thinking of launching commercial production of this bio-fertiliser for hydroponics. However, if some government organisation, such as the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), comes forward, I am willing to cooperate with it in promoting organic hydroponics in India,” he says. He believes that nearly 200 commercially important plants can be grown by hydroponics technique.

Source: Article taken from Natural News, only for information purpose

Asad Manzoor
Department of Agriculture & Agribusiness Management, University of Karachi
Truly a greatest wonder of modern science – the hydroponic, hydroponic farming technique produce abundant harvests of fruit, vegetables, grains, herbs and flowers in places never before able to sustain growth, deserts of the earth turn into oasis of vegetables and herbs. Hydroponic farms produce the healthiest crops with the highest yields and vitamin content due to their absolutely balanced nutrient by mean of nutrients solutions. Modern hydroponic methods and techniques supply food for millions of hungry people worldwide and also supply you, me and the food service industry with high superior quality produce. In truth, hydroponic cultivation is so effective; hydroponic cultivation is now moving to be a necessary part of modern day life like NASA has devised an advanced method of hydroponics for use in outer space. The science and art of hydroponics or soilless farming start with experimentation into determining the basic elementary composition of plants. These experiments not only story of present day, experiments have been dated as early as 1600 A.D., on the other hand, historical records show that plants have been cultivated in soilless mixtures of sand and gravel even earlier. Historically the hanging farms of Babylon and the floating farms of the Mexican Aztecs are wonderful examples of premature hydroponic faming..
Hydroponic A wonder of MOdern ScienceThe word of "Hydroponics" was first time coined by Dr. W.F. Gericke in 1936 to explain the cultivation and farming method of both edible and ornamental plants in a solution of water and dissolved essential micro and macro nutrients. The word Hydroponics is derived from the Greek "Hydro"- meaning water, and "Ponos"- meaning labor. In hydroponic method of cultivation, plants are provided with the essential nutrients required for growth by a “nutrient” solution which is principally nutrient enriched mineral water. This nutrient solution can be distributed through circulation around the roots by either the passive force of gravity or the active force of an electromechanical pump. Some hydroponic systems remain bath the roots in nutrient solution and use an aquarium air pump to oxygenate the solution.
Plants grown hydroponically are healthier than their soil grown counterparts because they receive a perfectly balanced diet and do not come in contact with soil-borne pests and diseases. In soil plant compete with plants, weeds and other flora of the field, while in hydroponics farming plant feed without any competition and received maximum nutrients on perfect time of every growth stage. Super efficient hydroponic systems produce high yield by preventing evaporation and runoff. Arid regions and deserts where water is scarce can now grow crops with hydrofarming. Hydroponics systems deliver water and nutrients directly to the plant, crops can be grown closer together without spacing each other and healthier plants add to a higher yield. By growing crops in a hydroponics system saves the costs of soil preparation, insecticides, fungicides and losses due to drought and ground flooding.
Pakistan face serious crises of food and vegetables, the production of edible vegetable not increase significantly while demand increase day by day, due to low production, prices of vegetables increase significantly. The only sustainable solution of this crises is to adopt hydroponic farming, even initial cost is high to setup a hydroponics system, on the hand other hand system is durable and high productive for long time.





Consumption of tomatoes in the United States has reached 4.3 billion pounds each year. When consumers are willing to pay double or triple standard prices for a great tasting, blemish free product, buyers and sellers alike can smile at the possibilities. Repeated pricing studies have shown that only high-quality, garden vegetables, such as tomatoes, cucumbers, salad crops and culinary herbs, can provide break even or better revenues in hydroponic systems. Overview of Hydroponics
Hydroponics is a technology for growing plants in nutrient solutions (water and fertilizers) with or without the use of artificial medium (e.g., sand, gravel, vermiculite, rockwool, peat, coir, sawdust) to provide mechanical support. Liquid hydroponic systems have no other supporting medium for the plant roots: aggregate systems have a solid medium of support. Hydroponic systems are further categorized as open, where after the nutrient solution has been delivered to the plant roots, it is not reused; or closed where surplus solution is recovered, replenished, and recycled. The definition of hydroponics has been confined to liquid systems only, which blurs statistical data and leads to underestimation of the extent of the technology and its economic implications. All hydroponic systems in temperate regions of the world are enclosed in greenhouse-type structures to provide temperature control, reduce evaporative water loss, and to reduce disease and pest infestations.
The principal advantages of hydroponic controlled environment agriculture (CEA) include high-density maximum crop yield, crop production where no suitable soil exists, a virtual indifference to ambient temperature and seasonality, more efficient use of water and fertilizers, minimal use of land area, and suitability for mechanization, disease and pest control. The major advantage of hydroponic (CEA) compared to field grown produce is the isolation of the crop from the soil, which often has problems of diseases, pests, salinity, poor structure and/or drainage.
The principal disadvantages of hydroponics, relative to conventional open-field agriculture, are the high costs of capital and energy inputs, and the high degree of management skills required for successful production. Capital costs may be especially excessive if the structures are artificially heated and cooled. This is why appropriate crops are limited to those with high economic value such as tomatoes.
The earliest food production in greenhouses was possibly the growing of off-season cucumbers under "transparent stone" for the Roman Emperor Tiberius during the first century. The technology was rarely employed, if at all, during the following 1500 years.
During the 1600's several techniques were used to protect horticultural crops against the cold. These included glass lanterns, bell jars, cold frames and hot beds covered with glass. In the seventeenth century, low portable wooden frames covered with an oiled translucent paper were used to warm the plant environment much as plastic row covers do today. In Japan, straw mats were used in combination with oil paper to protect crops from the severe natural environment. Greenhouses in France and England during the same century were heated by manure and covered with glass panes. The first glass house built in the 1700's, used glass on one side only as a sloping roof. Later in the century, glass was used on both sides. The glasshouse was used for fruit crops such as melons, grapes, peaches and strawberries and only rarely for vegetable production. The developers of this new technology kept market profitability in mind: they produced crops which appealed to the wealthy and privileged, the only people who could afford the luxury of fresh fruit produced out of season in greenhouses.
Greenhouse food production was not fully established until the introduction of polyethylene. In the U.S., the first use of polyethylene as a greenhouse cover was in 1948, when Professor Emery Myers Emmert at the University of Kentucky, used the less expensive material in place of more expensive glass. Professor Emmert is considered the father of plastics in the U.S. because he developed many principles of plastic technology for agricultural purposes through his research on greenhouses, plastic mulches and row covers.
The development of hydroponics has not been rapid. In the U.S., interest began to develop in the possible use of complete nutrient solutions about 1925. Greenhouse soils had to be replaced at frequent intervals or be maintained from year to year by adding large quantities of commercial fertilizers. As a result of these difficulties, research workers in certain U.S. agricultural experiment stations turned to nutrient solution culture methods as a means of replacing the natural soil system with either an aerated nutrient solution or an artificial soil composed of chemically inert aggregates moistened with nutrient solutions.
Between 1925 and 1935, extensive development took place in modifying the methods of the plant physiologists to large scale crop production. Workers at the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station improved the sand culture method. The water and sand culture methods were used for large scale production by investigators at the California Agricultural Experiment Station. Each of these methods involved certain fundamental limitations for commercial crop production which were partially overcome with the introduction of the subirrigation system initiated in 1934 at the New Jersey and Indiana Agricultural Experiment Station. While there was commercial interest in the use of such systems, hydroponics was not widely accepted due to the high cost in construction of the concrete growing beds. In the post-W.W.II years, there was a bloom of interest in the Southwest US in gravel culture of tomatoes and cucumbers. However, the systems were not perfected and were eventually abandoned.
After a period of approximately 20 years, interest in hydroponics was renewed with the advent of plastics. Plastics were used not only in the glazing of greenhouses, but also in lining the growing beds rather than beds made of concrete. Plastics were also important in the introduction of drip irrigation. Again, numerous promotional schemes involving hydroponics became common with huge investments made in hydroponic growing systems. Escalating oil prices, starting in 1973, substantially increased the costs of CEA heating and cooling. This along with fewer chemicals registered for pest control caused many bankruptcies and a decreasing interest in hydroponics.
Almost another 20 years have passed since the last real interest in hydroponics, but growers are once again establishing CEA/hydroponic systems. This is especially true in regions where there are environmental concerns in controlling any pollution of groundwater with nutrient wastes or soil sterilants. Today growers appear to be much more critical in regard to site selection, structures, the growing system, pest control and markets.
Hydroponics is a relatively new technology, evolving rapidly since its inception 70 years ago. From its origins in academic research, to its utilization in industry and government, hydroponics has found many new applications. It is a versatile technology, appropriate for both developing countries and high-tech space stations. Hydroponic technology can efficiently generate food crops from barren desert sand and desalinated ocean water, in mountainous regions too steep to farm, on city rooftops and concrete schoolyards and in arctic communities. In highly populated tourist areas where skyrocketing land prices have driven out traditional agriculture, hydroponics can provide locally grown high-value specialty crops such as fresh salad greens, herbs and cut flowers.
Like manufacturing, agriculture tends to move toward higher-technology, more capital-intensive solutions to problems. Hydroponics is highly productive and suitable for automation. However, the future growth of controlled environment agriculture and hydroponics depends greatly on the development of systems of production that are cost-competitive with those of open field agriculture. Improvements in associated technologies such as artificial lighting and agricultural plastics, and new cultivars with better pest and disease resistance will increase crop yields and reduce unit costs of production. Cogeneration projects, where hydroponic greenhouses utilize waste heat from industry and power plants, are already a reality and could expand in the next few years. Geothermal heat could support large expanses of greenhouses in appropriate locations.
It has been proposed that glasshouses located in deserts of the world could one day serve a dual purpose, where antenna could be embedded into the glass to receive energy radiation from an array of energy collectors in space, while at the same time facilitate hydroponic tomato production.
The economic prospects for controlled environmental agriculture and hydroponics may improve if governmental bodies determined that there are politically desirable effects of hydroponics that merit subsidy for the public good. Such beneficial effects may include the conservation of water in regions of scarcity or food production in hostile environments; governmental support for these reasons has occurred in the Middle East. Another desirable societal effect could be the provision of income-producing employment for chronically disadvantaged segments of the population entrapped in economically depressed regions; such employment produces tax revenues as well as personal incomes, reducing the impact on welfare rolls and improving the quality of life.
Hydroponics is a technical reality. Such production systems are producing horticultural crops where field-grown fresh vegetables and ornamentals are unavailable for much of the year. The development and use of controlled environment agriculture and hydroponics have enhanced the economic well being of many communities throughout the world.
Source: arizona















TerraCrops is a producer and exporter based in the Mexican state of Puebla. It owns one and a half hectares of medium technology greenhouses, irrigated with well water and rain water treated with ozone, where they grow peppers in three colours: orange, red and yellow, using hydroponic techniques. They export mainly to Canada and the United States and they also have a packing station that meets all safety and food safety requirements.

TerraCrops, which mainly focuses on exports, was created to take advantage of the geographical proximity of Mexico with the United States and Canada to trade very good quality vegetables grown with all the benefits of European technology.

http://www.freshplaza.es/images/2013/1008/hidro_fp1.jpg

"There's no risk of being affected by frosts with this technology, so we can produce all year round," says Carlos Vazquezmellado, owner of TerraCrops. The company's best commercial opportunities arise during the northern hemisphere's winter, due to the cold temperatures in Canada and the United States, although at this time the company is studying the southern hemisphere's winter's market potential.

"The weather in Mexico is not so harsh, so the technology level needed for crop protection isn't that high. This allows producers to make smaller investments and to recover their capital faster," says Carlos. "That is why we get the best prices between October and March, with peaks in November and December."

TerraCrops' immediate objectives include launching their own brand and obtaining organic certification. The company hasn't used any pesticides for the last 10 years, controlling pests and diseases through prevention by organic products.

The company also plans to integrate smallholders into a DCP that can establish an interesting production volume. "There are many underused greenhouses in Mexico because they don't have the right market and appropriate technical assistance. We can collect their product, open up a market for it and grow with them."

TerraCrops is currently very interested in contacting potential investors for the company. Among other things, Carlos Vazquezmellado emphasizes that the firm is located in an area that enjoys social peace and security and has excellent logistical connections with the United States. The firm is open to any offer that guarantees a long-term relationship that is beneficial to both parties.

For more information:

TerraCrops
Carlos Vazquezmellado Robles
México
Tel.  222 269 0115, 244 444 1767
E-mail:
cvr@TerraCrops.com
Web: www.TerraCrops.com

Source: http://www.freshplaza.com

Fodder or animal feed is any feedstock used specifically to feed domesticated livestock such as cattle, goats, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. "Fodder" refers particularly to food given to the animals (including plants cut and carried to them), rather than that which they forage for themselves in pasture and grazing land. It includes hay, straw, silage, compressed and pelleted feeds, oils and mixed rations, and also sprouted grains and legumes.  The fodder system we are focusing on here today is a hydroponically grown, quick turn over, and cost effective system.  

With many regions of the world experiencing record droughts and peak water becoming more of a concern for many businesses and individuals who own and raise livestock,  seeking options and solutions to maintain the health and growth of their animals can be a challenge.  Sprouting fodder on site can be a dependable and low cost source of feed and nutritional supplementation, creating a local, on demand feed source that can build great resiliency and independence for homesteaders and those in agricultural industries.

The technique is not new and has been used and investigated for many years but has started to see a resurgence in use throughout the world as water and growing issues become more prevalent.  As a response to extreme droughts, a number of commercial companies (many in Australia) have been developed.  These companies offer large scale systems that are able to produce many tons of fodder feed per day and offer new options for ranchers and livestock producers.

Not only do fodder systems use less water than field grown hay, they also offer many other advantages, including higher productivity through increased nutritional value.  In this article, we will explore the benefits and challenges of small to medium scale hydroponic fodder growing to produce localized feedstock.

The Basics of Sprouting Fodder

Like sprouting grains for human consumption (wheatgrass, beans, alfalfa, etc), growing fodder as sprouted grains is relatively easy and has a rapid turn over from start to finished product.  The typical sprouting time for fodder is 6 - 8 days and can be adjusted depending on what stage of growth you want to harvest at and the type of animal your are feeding.  Many different grains can be used - wheatgrass, barley, oats, etc.  Barley is the most popular.  The basic method of growing fodder is as follows:

  1. Soak the sprout grains or seed mix you wish to sprout for about 6-8 hours
    (An optional pre-soak in a very diluted bleach water solution can be used if there are concerns regarding mold - see later in the article)
  2. Drain and spread into shallow trays that have drain holes
  3. Water a couples times per day, keep moist and drained for the duration of growing cycle at a temperature range of 60 to 75°F (the lower end of the range help to reduce mold production)
  4. Harvest at the desired stage of growth and feed to the animal

Here is what the growth cycle looks like for barley grass.

The fodder will grow from a dry seed to a 6 -7 inch plant in a little as 6 days.  With multiple trays being rotated on a daily basis, once can grow a continuous supply of fresh feed with very little space, power, and water requirements.   And the great part is that it is digestible by a great number of animals, from chickens and rabbits, to goat, horses, and cows, this living food can compliment the diets most farm animals.

Benefits of Sprouted Fodder

There are many benefits to be found from using fresh barley grass and spouted grains that has been organically and hydroponically grown. When barley is sprouted, it releases many vitamins and minerals as well as converting hard to digest starches in easily digestible proteins. Some of the benefits include:

  • Water use reduction and conservation compared to field irrigation
  • Reduction in overall daily feed costs. 
  • Significant reduction if feed waste - the entire root mass is consumed with the grass
  • Increased nutritional value in the feed
  • High yield in a very small area
  • Increase your independence by growing food for your animals with no need for cultivated land
  • High digestibility
  • Vitamins & mineral saturation
  • Phytate reduction for pH normalization
  • Enzymatic activity increase
  • Increases in Omega 3, amino acids, natural hormones
  • Hedge the increase in feed costs by pre-buying large quantities of grain to have on hand
  • On-demand availability of fresh green feed 365 days a year - all season access.  
Issues and Considerations
  • Mold and fungus growth can be a problem.  Sterile equipment, a low humidity environment, good temperature regulation, clean water, and good air circulation can all help avoid mold and fungus problems.  A one percent bleach solution can be used to wash the grains prior to the initial soaking. This will pre-sterilize the seed.
  • Depending on the sprouting setup - it can be labor intensive to rotate and clean trays and transport the "wet" feed.
  • Seed quality can play a factor in the overall success and quality of the fodder produced. 
  • Storage of large quantities of grain needs to be considered in the costs and setup of a on-demand fodder system.  Keeping the stored grain from moisture and pests is important.
  • Some systems require power to operate and a lack of power/water in emergency situations needs to be factored in to the setup. 
Conclusion:

When looking at starting a homestead or beginning to raise animals for personal consumption or as a commercial enterprise, the nutritional needs of the livestock being raised will become a key factor in the workload and expense of a setup.  Feed availability, quality and price are all continuous concerns.  With good nutrition and supplementation at the forefront - other issues of animal care can be reduced and minimized.

By growing sprouted fodder - one can provide a great source of nutrition to a wide range of animals (goats, rabbits, sheep, pigs, horses, cows)  and have the ability to locally acquire an on-demand feedstock.  This feed will improve the health of your animals, reduce your overall maintenance costs, and build more resiliency into the care of your animals.

I hope you find this article useful in your homestead setup and overall animal care.  As sprouted grains have numerous nutritional benefits for not only animals but humans as well, we are working on a number of articles that will highlight sprouted grains for human consumption.

By:Jason Wiskerchen

Source: http://www.peakprosperity.com

July 06, 2013  Michael Levenston
There will be billions more hungry people in 2050. Growing our food on vertical farms or under radical new lighting systems may be key to ensuring they have enough to eat. Within just the past 10 years, an increasing interest in city farming has been paralleled by the creation of the slow food and locallly sourced, or “locavore” movements, a foundation for the rise of urban farming initiatives.
What’s for dinner? For that matter, what’s to eat, full stop? In a few decades time, that second question may become pressing. Mankind’s awareness of our food supplies has been heightened by massive crop failures due to millennial level floods, protracted droughts, and numerous food-borne disease outbreaks caused by microbes such as salmonella, E. coli strain 0157, toxoplasma and listeria. Consumers the world over now demand to know where their food comes from and how it is produced.
As if that were not enough to keep us up at all hours of the night, larger issues loom in the near future as our population continues to expand, placing greater pressure on the world’s agricultural industries to meet demands. As a species, we need to know whether modern farming is sustainable and compatible with the rest of the natural world, or is it causing irreparable damage to the environment that will eventually turn today’s serious problem of today into a food crisis of epic proportions in the near future?Hydroponics2
To answer some of these questions, it’s important to recall how things got this way to begin with. In the beginning of the modern era of humankind, around 10,000 years ago, most of our earliest cities were located close to agricultural land. Cities needed crops.
In the Middle East, for example, einkorn wheat was first successfully cultivated around 11,000 years ago in the south-eastern part of what is now Turkey. Farming then rapidly spread through the whole of that region. It had many advantages, including the fact that when wheat yields exceeded demand, its grain could be stored without losing any nutritional value. These early cities – Ur, Nineveh, Jericho, Babylon – became established next to their farmland, and for a time flourished in concert with the fields that provided their sustenance. Yet despite the invention of farming, eventually all of these early cities fell into disrepair, their decaying fortified walls and crumbling buildings blending seamlessly back into the harsh, arid landscapes which gave rise to them. The cause? Desertification. Drier weather patterns caused the failure of this single crop their civilisation depended upon – a mono-crop dependent upon a constant source of water to survive. It was irrigation which allowed such large amounts of wheat to be grown – but falling water levels brought the Middle East’s first agricultural revolution to an end. Only Egypt survived in the long term, thanks to the Nile River.
Today’s cities are at risk from a different set of issues. If trends in urbanisation continue at their current rates, cities could evolve into places where intolerable numbers of people may have to live, and who are forced to live well below the poverty limit, threatening to overwhelm sanitation systems and housing. Food and drinking water would be even scarcer than in many of today’s developing cities.
But this doesn’t have to happen. Most urban centres are experiencing a re-birth of their direct connections to agriculture. Within just the past 10 years, an increasing interest in city farming has been paralleled by the creation of the slow food and locallly sourced, or "locavore" movements, a foundation for the rise of urban farming initiatives.
Bright lights, big city
Included in the mix of successful city-based agricultural projects are rooftop gardens, rooftop greenhouses (both low tech and hydroponic), above-ground planting beds, the use of empty lots as farmland, and vertical farms that occupy tall buildings and abandoned warehouses. Collectively, these examples show the validity of growing food in the city. Not only could be they be carried out efficiently – such as rooftop greenhouses giving much higher yields than outdoor farms – but they could also operate without the pollution associated with outdoor farming.
Already, we have large-scale indoor farms such as EuroFresh Farms in Willcox, Arizona (318 acres (1.3 square km) of one-storey-high hydroponic greenhouses), supplying fresh tomatoes and cucumbers, and FarmedHere in Bedford Park, Illinois, a 90,000 square-foot (8,360 square metre) empty warehouse several storeys tall that was converted into an indoor farm producing tilapia (freshwater fish), a variety of leafy green vegetables, and several value-added products. Indoor farms (controlled environment agriculture or CEA) will undoubtedly replace most outdoor urban agricultural initiatives as the advantages of farming within protected environments become more widely accepted.
Judging by current trends in the development of advanced technologies, city-based CEA appears to have a bright future, as newer strategies emerge enabling indoor farming to be carried with increasing efficiency. Grow lights, for instance, have evolved from ordinary fluorescent light fixtures – expensive to operate – into a series of light-emitting diode (LED) lighting schemes. These LED lights can be adapted to emit light spectra at two dominant wavelengths (red 680nm; blue 460nm) tailored for growing green plants. The benefits of LED grow lights are obvious when compared to other outdated lighting schemes: LEDs cost less to run, and produce greater yields of most commercial crops, such as leafy greens and tomatoes. In early 2013, Phillips in the Netherlands announced it had invented an LED light with energy efficiency 150% greater than existing LED grow lights. This new development promises to significantly reduce energy costs involved in growing such crops.
Although most current vertical farming operations have chosen to specialise in cash crops consisting of leafy green vegetables (easy to grow and much in demand), in the near future, consumers are likely to ask for a wider variety of vegetables and fruits grown without pesticides, herbicides and other harmful chemical contaminants. At that point, vertical farming in tall buildings will replace less productive single-story greenhouses as the source of all city-grown produce. Some form of vertical farming now exists in Japan, Korea, Singapore, the United States, and Canada. New vertical farms are planned for a number of cities in the United States (Milwaukee, Memphis and Jackson Hole in Wyoming), and Linköping, Sweden.
Urban agriculture has the potential to become so pervasive within our cities that by the year 2050 they may be able to provide its citizens with up to 50% of the food they consume. In doing so, ecosystems that were fragmented in favour of farmland could be allowed to regain most of their ecological functions, creating a much healthier planet for all creatures great and small. 
Source: BBC

Hydroponics is a technology for growing plants in nutrient solutions (water containing fertilizers) with or without the use of an artificial medium (sand, gravel, vermiculite, rock wool, perlite, peat moss. coir, or sawdust) to provide mechanical support.Hydroponics Advantages & Disadvantages
Advantages of Hydroponics
  1. No soil is needed
  2. The water stays in the system and can be reused- thus, lower water costs
  3. It is possible to control the nutrition levels in their entirety- thus, lower nutrition costs
  4. No nutrition pollution is released into the environment because of the controlled system
  5. Stable and high yields
  6. Pests and diseases are easier to get rid of than in soil because of the container’s mobility
Disadvantages of Hydroponics
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  1. The hydroponic conditions (presence of fertilizer and high humidity) create an environment that stimulates salmonella growth.
  2. Another disadvantage is pathogens attacks including damp-off due to Verticillium wilt caused by the high moisture levels associated with hydroponics and overwatering of soil based plants.
  3. Also, many hydroponic plants require different fertilizers and containment system.
Source: Oasis Agro Industries Pakistan

Truly a wonder of modern science - hydroponic gardens produce bountiful harvests of fruit, vegetables, grains, herbs and flowers in places never before able to sustain growth. Hydroponic gardens produce the healthiest crops with the highest yields and vitamin content thanks to their perfectly balanced nutrient solutions. Modern hydroponic methods provide food for millions of people worldwide and supply you, me and the food service industry with superior produce. In fact, hydroponic cultivation is so effective, NASA has devised an advanced method of hydroponics for use in outer space. The science of hydroponics began with experimentation into deter-mining the elementary composition of plants. These experiments have been dated as early as 1600 A.D., however, records show that plants have been cultivated in soil free mixtures of sand and gravel even earlier. The hanging gardens of Babylon and the floating gardens of the Mexican Aztecs are perfect examples of early hydroponic gardening. Egyptian hieroglyphics have even been found depicting the cultivation of plants in water as far back as several hundred years BC.


The word "Hydroponics" was coined by Dr. W.F. Gerick in 1936 to describe the cultivation of both edible and ornamental plants in a solution of water and dissolved nutrients. The simple meaning is derived from the Greek "Hydro"- meaning water, and "Pones"- meaning labor. In this method of cultivation, plants are provided with the nutrients required for growth by a “nutrient” solution which is basically nutrient enriched mineral water. This nutrient solution can be circulated around the roots by  either the passive force of gravity or the active force of an electromechanical pump. Some systems simply bath the roots in nutrient solution and use an air pump to oxygenate the solution from below to prevent stagnation and provide the roots with important oxygen.

Hydroponics an overviewPlants grown hydroponically are healthier than their soil grown counterparts since they receive a perfectly balanced diet and do not come in contact with soilborne pests and diseases. Super efficient hydroponic systems like the ones we show you how to build conserve water and nutrients by preventing evaporation and runoff. Arid regions where water is scarce can now grow crops with hydroponics. Since hydroponic systems deliver water and nutrients directly to the plant, crops can be grown closer together without starving each other and healthier plants add to a higher yield. By growing crops in a sterile environment, under ideal conditions, hydroponics saves the costs of soil preparation, insecticides, fungicides and losses due to drought and ground flooding.
In soil, plants waste a tremendous amount of energy developing a large root system to search for moisture and nutrients. When grown hydroponically, the roots are bathed or sprayed with nutrients dissolved in water. This way their energy can be redirected into the production of more foliage, flowers, fruits and vegetables.
Plants grown hydroponically are healthier because they receive a well balanced 'diet'. They are more vigorous because little energy is wasted searching for water and nutrients. As a result, hydroponically grown produce is generally larger, tastier, and more nutritious than the same produce grown in soil. In order to give the physical support soil would normally provide, a sterile medium such as sand, gravel, rocks, cocofiber or rockwool (or combination of each) may be used. In the case of aeroponics, no medium is used and the plants receive physical support from baskets and in this case, wires suspended from the roof. These plants are rotated through a chamber that supplies their roots with a fine spray of water and hydroponic nutrients.Advertisement3

Oxygen to the roots increases a plant’s metabolism substantially. Some advantages of replacing soil with a sterile medium are:
1. Elimination of soil borne pests, funguses and diseases.
2. Elimination of troublesome weeds and stray seedlings.
3. Reduction of health risks and labor costs associated with pest management and soil care. 
At the Environmental Research Laboratory (ERL) at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Dr. Carl Hodges and Dr. Merle Jensen in conjunction with Walt Disney Productions, have developed new concepts for presenting hydroponic technologies to the public in an entertaining way. The ERL helped create two attractions called "Listen to The Land" and "Tomorrow’s Harvest" - both major facilities at Epcot Center near Orlando, Florida. Hydroponics is NASA's solution to provide a self sufficient food source for future space stations and proposed visitors to mars. The administration has sponsored a research program titled Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) in order to further develop the technology and carry it into the future. The picture below is of Epcot/ NASA’s Space Agriculture expo as seen from a tour of the Epcot Center attraction. The lighting used in these examples is high pressure sodium or HPS, which delivers an excellent spectrum of color and output in lumens. High Intensity Discharge (H.I.D.) lighting, which includes the HPS and metal halide type lamps, is the best lighting to use when gardening indoors or supplementing natural lighting outdoors due to its efficiency and close representation of the sun’s natural light color and intensity.

Source: Oasis Agro Industries Pakistan

Pakistan can enhance vegetable and fruit crops yield with hydroponic farming technology to overcome the food shortages and price hike tendency. This technology would not only raise yield but also enhance nutrition abilities of plants. Hydroponics can be a futuristic technology for Pakistan to ensure proper supply of vegetable and fruits crops as it uses 70 percent to 90 percent less water than irrigated soil based agriculture. No water was lost in the ground or absorbed by weeds or lost in evaporation, officials in Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (MINFAL) said. A website relating to agri news reported that a hydroponic pilot project has already been launched in Rawat (Islamabad) under the name bio-blitz over just five acres of land. The state-of-the- art five-acre Green House facility is producing hydroponic tomatoes of all varieties including tangy, elegant, cherry and others. If hydroponics farming technology is introduced properly, then country can triple the revenues earned on agriculture exports and the country could be a huge power player in the market because nobody else in the region is using high-tech hydroponics. The officials said in the pilot project, a Dutch hydoponic expert was working with the team training Pakistani staff on how to run a hydroponic greenhouse. According to them, a high tech hydroponic facility was more expensive to set up than soil farming but once it is set up, operating and maintenance costs were low and the very high and definite yields means that invested money would be recovered in one year.
Hydroponic farming to help achieve Agri targetsCountries, which were world leaders in hydroponics employ what was called a 'cluster approach where land is allocated just for hydroponic farming practiced by different farmers. To develop a viable hydroponics industry, Pakistan desperately needs to improve its infrastructure facilities, such as availability of electricity and land. Greenhouses need a constant supply of power but the situation in Pakistan is not encouraging, they added. Agriculture scientists said there are two main types of hydroponics culture, namely solution culture and medium culture. The solution culture excludes roots as source of nutrition, while the medium culture is based on roots as part of the process. The solution culture method is further divided into three types - static solution culture, continuous flow solution culture, and aeroponics. The medium culture, on the other hand, is based on medium through which the root is routed - sand culture, gravel culture or rock wool culture. These media of nutrition are again sub-divided into two categories - sub-irrigation and top irrigation. In all these techniques, mostly plastic is used for hydroponic reservoirs, though other materials have also been used, which include concrete, glass, metal, vegetable solids and wood. Experts advised that the containers should block light to prevent algae growth in the nutrient solution. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants, using mineral nutrient solutions without soil. Terrestrial plants may be grown with their roots in the mineral nutrient solution only or in an inert medium, such as perlite, gravel, or mineral wool. This technology was discovered in the 19th century. In this technology plants absorb essential mineral nutrients as inorganic ions in water. In natural conditions, soil acts as a mineral nutrient reservoir, but the soil itself is not essential to plant growth. Hydroponics is also a standard technique in biology research and teaching. Researchers have obtained groundbreaking results in various countries, however the process has proved it to be thoroughly practical, having an edge over conventional methods of horticulture. Talking about the benefits of the technology, the officials said it saves water, freedom from soil diseases and weeds and less labour needed and cost effective. Scientists agreed that hydroponics fruits and vegetables are sweeter and more luscious than those grown in ordinary soil are. The technology is being utilised around the globe, including the US, European Union (EU) and African countries. Repeated pricing studies have shown that only high-quality garden type vegetables like tomato, cucumber, potato, sweet peppers, melon, and specialty lettuce can cover costs or give a return in hydroponics systems. As the consumer becomes increasingly aware of quality differences, especially the high quality of tomatoes, cucumbers, and leafy vegetables coming from hydroponics, the demand will increase. This, along with the increased emphasis on eating more vegetables for dietary and health reasons, will surely help the hydroponics industry.
Source: http://www.nation.com.pk

Hydroponics basically means working water ("hydro" means "water" and "ponos" means "labor"). Many different civilizations have utilized hydroponic growing techniques throughout history. As noted in Hydroponic Food Production (Fifth Edition, Woodbridge Press, 1997, page 23) by Howard M. Resh: "The hanging gardens of Babylon, the floating gardens of the Aztecs of Mexico and those of the Chinese are examples of 'Hydroponic' culture. Egyptian hieroglyphic records dating back several hundred years B.C. describe the growing of plants in water." Hydroponics is hardly a new method of growing plants.
History of HydroponicsHowever, giant strides have been made over the years in this innovative area of agriculture. Throughout the last century, scientists and horticulturists experimented with different methods of hydroponics. One of the potential applications of hydroponics that drove research was for growing fresh produce in nonarable areas of the world. It is a simple fact that some people cannot grow in the soil in their area (if there is even any soil at all). This application of hydroponics was tested during World War II. Troops stationed on nonarable islands in the Pacific were supplied with fresh produce grown in locally established hydroponic systems. Later in the century, hydroponics was integrated into the space program.
As NASA considered the practicalities of locating a society on another plant or the Earth's moon, hydroponics easily fit into their sustainability plans. This research is ongoing. But by the 1970s, it wasn't just scientists and analysts who were involved in hydroponics. Traditional farmers and eager hobbyists began to be attracted to the virtues of hydroponic growing. A few of the positive aspects of hydroponics include:
  • The ability to produce higher yields than traditional, soil-based agriculture
  • Allowing food to be grown and consumed in areas of the world that cannot support crops in the soil
  • Eliminating the need for massive pesticide use (considering most pests live in the soil), effectively making our air, water, soil, and food cleaner
Commercial growers are flocking to hydroponics like never before. The ideals surrounding these growing techniques touch on subjects that most people care about, such as helping end world hunger and making the world cleaner. In addition to the extensive research that is going on, everyday people from all over the world have been building (or purchasing) their own systems to grow great-tasting, fresh food for
their family and friends. Educators are realizing the amazing applications that hydroponics can have in
the classroom. And ambitious individuals are striving to make their dreams come true by making their
living in their backyard greenhouse, selling their produce to local markets and restaurants.

There are 6 basic types of hydroponic systems; Wick, Water Culture, Ebb and Flow (Flood & Drain), Drip (recovery or non-recovery), N.F.T. (Nutrient Film Technique) and Aeroponic. There are hundreds of variations on these basic types of systems, but all hydroponic methods are a variation (or combination) of these six. Scroll down this page (or click on the system names) to see drawings and a description of each type of hydroponic system.
WICK SYSTEM
Basic Hydroponic Systems and How They WorkThe Wick system is by far the simplest type of hydroponic system. This is a passive system, which means there are no moving parts. The nutrient solution is drawn into the growing medium from the reservoir with a wick. Free plans for a simple wick system are available (click here for plans). This system can use a variety of growing medium. Perlite, Vermiculite, Pro-Mix and Coconut Fiber are among the most popular. The biggest drawback of this system is that plants that are large or use large amounts of water may use up the nutrient solution faster than the wick(s) can supply it.
WATER CULTUREBasic Hydroponic Systems and How They Work2
The water culture system is the simplest of all active hydroponic systems. The platform that holds the plants is usually made of Styrofoam and floats directly on the nutrient solution. An air pump supplies air to the air stone that bubbles the nutrient solution and supplies oxygen to the roots of the plants. Water culture is the system of choice for growing leaf lettuce, which are fast growing water loving plants, making them an ideal choice for this type of hydroponic system. Very few plants other than lettuce will do well in this type of system. This type of hydroponic system is great for the classroom and is popular with teachers. A very inexpensive system can be made out of an old aquarium or other water tight container. The biggest drawback of this kind of system is that it doesn't work well with large plants or with long-term plants.
EBB & FLOW - (FLOOD AND DRAIN)
Basic Hydroponic Systems and How They Work3The Ebb and Flow system works by temporarily flooding the grow tray with nutrient solution and then draining the solution back into the reservoir. This action is normally done with a submerged pump that is connected to a timer. When the timer turns the pump on nutrient solution is pumped into the grow tray. When the timer shuts the pump off the nutrient solution flows back into the reservoir. The Timer is set to come on several times a day, depending on the size and type of plants, temperature and humidity and the type of growing medium used.
The Ebb & Flow is a versatile system that can be used with a variety of growing mediums. The entire grow tray can be filled with Grow Rocks, gravel or granular Rockwool. Many people like to use individual pots filled with growing medium, this makes it easier to move plants around or even move them in or out of the system. The main disadvantage of this type of system is that with some types of growing medium (Gravel, Growrocks, Perlite), there is a vulnerability to power outages as well as pump and timer failures. The roots can dry out quickly when the watering cycles are interrupted. This problem can be relieved somewhat by using growing media that retains more water (Rockwool, Vermiculite, coconut fiber or a good soilless mix like Pro-mix or Faffard's).
DRIP SYSTEMS RECOVERY / NON-RECOVERY
Drip system RecoveryNon recoveryDrip systems are probably the most widely used type of hydroponic system in the world. Operation is simple; a timer controls a submersed pump. The timer turns the pump on and nutrient solution is dripped onto the base of each plant by a small drip line. In a Recovery Drip System the excess nutrient solution that runs off is collected back in the reservoir for re-use. The Non-Recovery System does not collect the run off.
A recovery system uses nutrient solution a bit more efficiently, as excess solution is reused, this also allows for the use of a more inexpensive timer because a recovery system doesn't require precise control of the watering cycles. The non-recovery system needs to have a more precise timer so that watering cycles can be adjusted to insure that the plants get enough nutrient solution and the runoff is kept to a minimum. The non-recovery system requires less maintenance due to the fact that the excess nutrient solution isn't recycled back into the reservoir, so the nutrient strength and pH of the reservoir will not vary. This means that you can fill the reservoir with pH adjusted nutrient solution and then forget it until you need to mix more. A recovery system can have large shifts in the pH and nutrient strength levels that require periodic checking and adjusting.
N.F.T. (Nutrient Film Technique)Basic Hydroponic Systems and How They Work4
This is the kind of hydroponic system most people think of when they think about hydroponics. N.F.T. systems have a constant flow of nutrient solution so no timer required for the submersible pump. The nutrient solution is pumped into the growing tray (usually a tube) and flows over the roots of the plants, and then drains back into the reservoir. There is usually no growing medium used other than air, which saves the expense of replacing the growing medium after every crop. Normally the plant is supported in a small plastic basket with the roots dangling into the nutrient solution. N.F.T. systems are very susceptible to power outages and pump failures. The roots dry out very rapidly when the flow of nutrient solution is interrupted.
AEROPONIC
Basic Hydroponic Systems and How They Work5The aeroponic system is probably the most high-tech type of hydroponic gardening. Like the N.F.T. system above the growing medium is primarily air. The roots hang in the air and are misted with nutrient solution. The mistings are usually done every few minutes. Because the roots are exposed to the air like the N.F.T. system, the roots will dry out rapidly if the misting cycles are interrupted.A timer controls the nutrient pump much like other types of hydroponic systems, except the aeroponic system needs a short cycle timer that runs the pump for a few seconds every couple of minutes.
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