Hydroponics Growing, What is Required?

The growth of plants without the requirement of soil is mostly known as hydroponics. The hydroponics growing of plants will require the necessary nutrients rather than the soil. Yes! The requirement of sand comes in handy when one needs to strengthen the plant roots.

The advantage of hydroponics growing to the farmers or gardeners is growing more foods in smaller areas. The small areas may be the:

• Rooftops
• Classrooms
• Living rooms
• Office.

Hydroponics growing is mostly adapted in areas where there is less space or soil or limited water.

Lot of questions comes in minds when we hear about hydroponics,

• How we give support the plants without using soil?
• How do plants grown with just nutrients & give the produce almost more than that of the same plants when grown in soil.

Well all this is possible in the soil less growing environment adapted in the hydroponic growing. One may research or study few books on the hydroponics growing. Today with the advancement of technology, the growers have believed that there are advantages in hydroponics gardening.The hydroponic growing of plants indoors have given the advantage to the gardeners like

• Dirt free gardening
• Less use of space
• Lesser maintenance
• Pesticide free produce

The hydroponic growing of plants required 2 important requirements for the plant growth which is the nutrient intake & the oxygen intake. The nutrient is supplied by mixing the required nutrients with water. Oxygen is important for the root health. This is misted on the roots which speeds the plants growth & be healthier. In normal growing in soil, not much oxygen is available to the roots. Hydroponic growing has gained an advantage in such areas. Most of the hydroponics plants only require perlite, gravel for the support. One can grow crops of the highest quality any number of times in any area or amount of space that is available.

Let us know the ideal conditions that are required for proper hydroponics growing,

Climate Temperature range - During lights-off cycle it will be between 64 to 71 degrees Fahrenheit & during lights-on cycle it will be 70-80 degree Fahrenheit.

Roof Zone temperature - The temperature should be ideally 60 degrees. Make sure that the plants growing in those pots should not be placed directly on the floor.Since; the cool surface of the floor may harm the roots & slow down the growth rate of the plants.

Water/Nutrient Solution Temperature - This should be around 66-71 degrees.

Grow Room Humidity - The level of humidity during vegetative phase should be 40 to 65%.It should be 40 to 60% during the flowering stage. Do not allow the plants exposed to excess humidity.

Light Cycles - 6 hours off & 18 hours on at the time of vegetative growth & at the time of flowering growth it should be 12 hours on and 12 hours off. One should also take notice of the amount of coverage a particular light will do. A 400 watt bulb will be adequate for an area of 10 square feet. A 1000 wattage bulb will be required for an area of 20 square feet of space.

Again one should consider the type of lighting that will required at various stages like

• For early cuttings, it will be fluorescent lighting
• For Vegetative Growth it will be Metal Halide.
• For floral growth it will be high pressure sodium

Distance of Light to Plant Tops The plants should not be placed closed to the light or else the high intensity will damage them. The bulbs are separated from the plants by glass or any other material. A 2.5 feet distance should be there between the top pf the plant and the bottom of the light bulb. Make sure this is monitored at regular intervals to prevent any burning.

Atmospheric Requirements - The roots of the plants require bulk oxygen, to get maximum oxygen supply for the plants one can install the aeroponics system that will boost the oxygen level and result in faster growth. The growth of plants is at its best when large amount of CO2 or carbon dioxide is given to those leaves. So in average temperatures the level of CO2 should be 400 ppm.

Air circulation - Fans should be used in larger rooms for the air circulation so that all the plants seem to be in a moving ocean of air.

Air Exchange - Exhaust fans are required for regular exchange of air in the space for every 5 minutes.