Hydroponics: Meaning, types, advantages and disadvantages

It is possible to grow a farm or garden without soil using an inert medium such as organic rice husk and stone fleece to endorse the root structure. This method, known as hydroponics, can ultimately allow for more efficient plant growth by placing them in immediate communication with the source of nutrients. 

To ensure a community’s food security, it has become necessary to enforce advanced technological and modern farming technology domestically. As you will see, there are numerous reasons why we require hydroponics, including better quality yield, conservation, safer start producing, and much more.

 

What is hydroponics?

The term “hydroponics” is derived from the prehistoric Greek words “hydro” (water) and “phonics” (labour). Water performs the work here, allowing plants to increase. Hydroponics is, at its core, a way to grow plants. Rather than soil, hydroponics relies on a nutrient-rich water solution. The concept may appear to be a novel “hack,” but it has existed for hundreds of years and has assisted in enabling population increase as arable land accessibility declines.

 

Why is hydroponics needed?

The current global agricultural system will need to boost food production by around 70% by 2050 to meet the world population’s caloric needs. Judging by the growth in yield over the past five decades, the prospect of achieving this goal looks pretty grim. The expansion of agricultural land is the only option for meeting the growing food demands. Currently, 38% of the world’s non-frozen land is used for growing food. This percentage is expected to continue rising until 2050, when 593 million hectares of land is predicted to be serving as agricultural land to sustain the global population. The conversion of so much area into agricultural land will place many vital ecosystems at risk of complete destruction, particularly those essential for maintaining the balance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This is the primary reason why finding a viable alternative to the current agricultural system is necessary. Hydroponics offer a great solution to this issue, making it an important aspect of the future of agriculture.

 

How does a hydroponics system work?

There are many metabolic processes involved in plant growth. However, plants primarily require three things to grow- water, sunlight, and nutrients. Traditionally, soil anchors a plant and serves as a reservoir for nutrients and water. Contrarily, in a hydroponics system, the need for soil is eliminated as roots are provided directly with a nutrient-charged aqueous solution. In such a system, the plant’s roots are given the essential nutrients in either a passive system or an active system.

• Active systems utilise pumps to aerate and circulate nutrient solutions, providing the plant’s root zone with the nutrients for uptake.

 

• Passive systems don’t have any pumps or other moving parts. The root zone is fed with the nutrient solutions through flooding, capillary action, or gravity.

 

Hydroponics system: Components

For establishing a successful hydroponics system, you need a few major components. These include:

Growing media

Hydroponic plants are usually grown in inert media that anchor its root structure and support its weight. Growing media serves as the substitute for soil but does not provide the plant with any independent nutrition. Instead, it retains nutrients and moisture from the nutrient solution and delivers them to the plant. 

Air pumps and air stones

Plants submerged in water can drown quickly if the water is not adequately aerated. Air stones disperse bubbles of dissolved oxygen all through the nutrient solution reservoir. These bubbles are also helpful in evenly distributing the dissolved nutrients throughout the solution. However, air stones do not produce oxygen by themselves. To do that, they need to be connected to an air pump via an opaque food-grade plastic tube. 

Net pots 

Hydronic plants are held in mesh planters called net pots that are crafted with a latticed material, which allows the roots to grow out of the bottom and sides of the pot. This provides the roots with a greater exposure to nutrients and oxygen. Net pots are designed to offer superior drainage than traditional plastic or clay pots.

 

Hydroponics: What do you need to begin? 

You don’t need much to get started with a hydroponic planting system. Hydroponic growing requires the following items:

1. Oxygen 
2. Freshwater
3. Nutrients 
4. Root support
5. Light

Specific plant, as well as any growing medium, requires fresh water. Oxygen is also essential. Regardless of the hydroponic system, plants will require the appropriate root support. All plants have unique nutrient requirements, which do not alter simply because they are managed to grow in water rather than soil. Of course, light is required for growth. An indoor hydroponics system, whether for a polytunnel or a vertical design, is an excellent way to begin hydroponics.

 

See also: What is peat? Why is it important in gardening?

 

Types of hydroponics systems

Hydroponics is a complicated system with numerous techniques for ensuring nutrients attains by your plants. The money invested and the degree of difficulty vary.

Deep water culture

Deep water culture, also recognised as the storage tank method, is assumed to be the most effortless technique for running hydroponics. Growers must use an aquatic air pump to oxidise the solution, so the roots do not drown.

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Nutrient film technique

This method is based on the plant’s roots absorbing oxygen from the air via a constant flow of nutrient solution. To use this method correctly, the plants must rise with a slight tilt, allowing the remedy to flow slightly downward. This may seem a bother, but the steadily increasing growth rate makes it worthwhile!

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Aeroponics

The roots are suspended in the air and misted with the solution in aeroponics. You can encourage growth by striking the seeds with a pond cool mist humidifier or a fine spray gun.

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Wick system

Moisture is delivered to the plant via a wick that links the roots and soil solution. This method is perfect for vegetables and herbs that do not require a lot of water to grow.

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Ebb and flow

Plants are regularly subjected to nutrients by swamping the system with solution, dousing the origins, and then sapping.

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Hydroponics: Tips for growing plants hydroponically

Instead of being backed by an inert carrier such as crushed rock or peat, hydroponic plants are raised without soil. Hydroponic gardening is a new and exciting industry with numerous advantages.

There’s no need for troublesome weeds in your garden because they don’t develop well enough without your attention – don’t neglect them, or those unwanted intruders will take over totally.

Provide nutritious food

Among the most critical considerations when burgeoning hydroponic plants is the availability of high-quality nutrients. Nutrients are required for plant growth and will prevent your plants from thriving. There are numerous nutrient solutions on the market, and selecting the best one for your plants can be difficult. One of the best ways to ensure good health in hydroponic plants is to provide high-quality nutrients.

Provide plenty of light for your plants.

Another critical factor in cultivating hydroponic plants is to provide your plants with plenty of light. Plants require lamps to perform photosynthesis; without sufficient sunlight, they cannot grow properly. Various lighting options for hydroponic plants are available, so make sure to find one that fulfils your plants’ requirements. It is critical to give your plants plenty of light for healthy growth.

Use appropriate watering techniques

• Watering schedules are vital for hydroponic plants, and soaking them accurately is critical to their health. It is best to water your plants regularly, giving them sufficient water to satisfy their demands.
• Make sure to change your irrigation schedule based on the type of seedlings you’re growing and the weather. Because hydroponic plants cannot absorb moisture from the soil, they should be watered more frequently than outdoor plants.
• Watering schedules differ depending on the hydroponic system you use, so do your research to find the best irrigation schedule for your seedlings. Watering schedules are critical for the growth of healthy hydroponic plants.

Keep the pH level stable

Maintaining the pH level of your hydroponic plants is critical to their health. It is essential to keep the pH between 5.5 and 6.0. This will enable your seedlings to absorb nutrients properly. It is also critical to keep your growing medium neutral. This will aid in adequately growing your plants in their hydroponic surroundings.

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Hydroponics: Advantages 

Enhanced growth

The main question everyone has is, “Do hydroponics plants grow faster?” The response to this critical question is unequivocal “yes.”  Plants grow bigger and faster because getting nutrients from their environment is less energy-intensive. The plants are mainly force-fed everything they require to sprout into healthy specimens.

Fewer resources are needed

Hydroponic plants have been evidenced using just 10% of the water a field-grown plant would use. This occurs due to a confined system and thus less “slippage” in feeding the plants.

Interference is reduced

The extra advantages of utilising hydroponics are enormous. To begin with, there are no weeds, few pests, and few diseases. This is due to the plants being kept in a safe setting and not using soil. As a bonus, the pesticide requirement is significantly reduced.

Other advantages

Hydroponics have less evaporation, are more governed (i.e. heat, moisture, and air composition), and are more beneficial to the environment due to reduced pollution and waste.

 

Hydroponics: Disadvantages

Setup is costly

A hydroponics system is more costly to obtain and build than a traditional garden. The cost of a system varies based on its type and size and whether it is prepackaged or made with personal materials to achieve a customised design.

Power outages

All passive and proactive hydroponics systems rely on electricity to power multiple aspects, such as artificial light, pumping stations, impellers, fans, etc. As a result, a power failure will impact the entire system. A loss of power in an active approach can be dangerous to the plants if it goes unreported by the grower.

Regular monitoring and upkeep are required

Hydroponics necessitates more monitoring and micromanagement than traditional plant cultivation. All system components, including lights, temperature, and many facets of the nutrient solution, such as pH and electrical conductivity, require constant vigilance to preserve a highly controlled growing environment. The nutrient solution must also be rinsed and supplanted regularly, and the specific focusing must be routinely cleaned to avoid accumulation and cluttering.

Waterborne illnesses

Waterborne diseases are much more common in hydroponically grown plants because they are grown in water rather than soil. Viruses can cause quickly all through the regeneration process as a whole, involving the global collection of plants, because water is constantly circulating through the system. In extreme cases, poor sanitation can brutally murder all the seedlings in a hydroponics system within hours.

 

FAQs

What is hydroponics, in simple words?

Hydroponics is the technique of growing plants in nutrient-rich water without or with the support structure of an inert carrier, including dust, small stones, or vermiculite. It is also known as nutriculture, soil-free culture, or tank farming.

What are the three advantages of hydroponics?

• Water usage can be reduced by up to 90%.
• In the exact size of space, production increases by 3 to 10 times.
• A very well hydroponic system can grow many crops twice as quickly.