Advanced Hydroponics Technologies

Advanced Hydroponics Technologies

Roby Jose Ciju

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This book is dedicated to all home gardeners, farmers, commercial growers and all plant-loving souls who have a genuine interest in growing plants...

Hydroponics: An Introduction

Today the term ‘hydroponics’ has become synonymous with ‘soilless production of crop plants’ though the term itself means that it is water (‘hydro’ means ‘water’) that is at work (‘ponics’ means ‘labor’ or ‘work’). The term ‘hydroponics’ may seem to represent a sophisticated process but in reality, hydroponics is a simple process of crop production. The only difference of a hydroponics crop production from that of a traditional method is that hydroponics makes use of a nutrient solution as plant growing medium instead of soil.

Hydroponics under controlled environmental conditions (i.e. greenhouse hydroponics) is more successful than that of outdoor hydroponics. When higher yields per unit area and higher productivity per plant are desired, greenhouse hydroponics is preferred than outdoor hydroponics.

Hydroponics Farm

Hydroponics is based on the principle that plant growth in a traditional soil-based production system is not dependent on the soil rather dependent on the nutrients and moisture present in the soil. So if the plant nutrients and moisture required for the plant growth are provided through any other medium other than the soil, plants can still have a natural growth. So, in a hydroponics system, ideal nutrient and moisture requirements of the plants are fulfilled through a water culture or solution culture under ideal environmental conditions. In other words, hydroponics is soilless crop production system under controlled environmental conditions.

Not all plants are suitable for hydroponics systems. Generally, seasonal annual plants can successfully be grown using hydroponics. Both quality and quantity of the produce are increased in hydroponics growing systems.

Growing Media for Hydroponics

Different types of growing media like rockwool, vermiculite, perlite, etc may be used in a hydroponics system. However, most popular and highly recommended growing media are perlite, rockwool and expanded clay pebbles. This is because these media maintain a neutral pH always and do not alter the pH