Soilless gardening is nothing new, and in fact dates back several thousand years; however, today’s indoor gardening supplies are definitely high tech. Growing indoors is not “rocket science,” but it’s definitely science. Although you are growing plants inside in a soilless medium such as rockwool or even gravel, your objective is to duplicate the natural conditions under which your plants evolved. Monitoring these conditions and maintaining control over them requires that you keep and maintain numerous kinds of meters and controls among your indoor garden supplies.
Acidity or Alkalinity?
Depending on the plants your growing indoors, your medium needs to have a careful pH balance between acidity (low pH) and alkalinity (high pH). If you are using a highly alkaline medium such as rockwool (the most common choice), you need to amend it with an acidic substance. You’ll then need to carefully monitor the pH balance; pH meters are the best way to make sure that your plants are growing in the best possible environment.
CO2 Enrichment
Recall from your high school science courses that plants “breathe” carbon dioxide and “exhale” oxygen. This is an aspect of plant growing indoors that often gets overlooked. Your indoor gardening supplies should definitely include a CO2 generator. Why? For the same reason that you don’t want to breathe in a tightly sealed space. Just as you would quickly use up the oxygen in such an environment, so too do plants use up the CO2 in the enclosed spaces in which hydroponic gardens are maintained. Adding increased amounts of CO2 with a CO2 generator can also speed up the process of photosynthesis, thus maximizing plant growth.
light Timers and Light Meters
The most money you’ll invest in indoor gardening supplies will most likely be for lighting. Much information about types of bulbs and reflector hoods is available elsewhere; once you have installed a lighting system however, you will need to do everything possible to make certain that it approximates natural sun conditions as closely as possible. Light timers allow you to control the length of time your plants are exposed to your artificial “sun,” whereas light meters permit you to monitor elements such as brightness and wavelength. Remember that plants’ growth cycles are tied to the changing seasons, and the corresponding changes in the hours of sunlight as well as the angle at which those rays strike the earth.
Lots to Choose From
Meters and timers are the heart and soul of modern scientific growing indoors, and are the most important indoor gardening supplies you can own after a good lighting system. For this reason, it makes sense to buy the highest quality devices your budget permits; these are indoor gardening supplies that you don’t want to skimp on.
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