Hydroponic organic gardening

Benefits of Hydroponic gardening:

You can also try the hydroponic method of gardening. This uses water and not soil to supply nutrients. This method is very efficient when you want to grow indoor and in a soil-less, pest-free atmosphere. Better plant growth is assured as nutrients are easy to absorb.

Another related area is the aerogarden or aeroponics which use plants that grow in a nutrient mist, which means full access is available to gases and nutrient, giving very fast greowth. These are quite advanced systems and not for the beginner. This is a kind of automatic self-contained system, we will review it soon.

What you need to set up a hydroponic garden:

• choose which plants you want to grow (seems obvious but better think this way round)
• choose which organic nutrient mixture you are using
• define the amount of light and heat you are providing
• select the structure, containers and substrate in which you put your plants

Active hydroponics require pumps, pipes, tubes, filters, monitotrs etc and are quite complicated. See our hydroponic tips page (left navigation) for more tips and advice.

Passive hydroponics is just sticking a cutting in a jar of nutrient, and is a good placve to start.

Deep Water Culture gives a stable water supply just under the plant; Ebb and flow (or flood and drain) systems bring the nutrient solution in and out to wash the roots. Drip system uses an absorbent stone wool material to hold water and are easy to set up and run. There are other methods but that is a start.

Above: Hydroponic tomato plants in a commercial market garden

Many commercial hydroponic systems are available for hydroponic gardening (or 'hydroponics') and it is very good for growing top class market garden produce.

At home you can experiment with the technique and see if it works well.

We have more pages on hydroponic and organic gardening, use the navigation to the left.

This technique of vegetable and herbs planting is getting more popular as it reduces the issues involved when planting in soil, like weeds, dirt, stones etc.

• Vegetables can grow faster, about 40 to 50 percent faster.
• Plants grown hydroponically save their energy seeking nutrients with long roots, as it is provided to them directly in a small container.
• As a result roots are minor in size and vegetables are healthier and larger.
• Very less need to water these plants. You will have to water them after weeks and still the growth is extraordinary.
• Because of controlled and healthy surrounding you need not worry about pest control.
• You can grow herbs and vegetables both indoors and outdoors.
• If a herb gets infected you don't need to bother for other herbs or veggies since only the infected one needs to be dispatched.

Gearing up plans for your hydroponic garden:

• First you need to make the check list of things you need to start the setup.
• You will need a place inside your house where light is available abundantly.
• You have to know what herbs and vegetables you prefer to grow.
• Create a separate list for those herbs and vegetables according to your kitchen essentials.
• At first it won't be easy to do all work by yourself for example preparing the nutrients mixture and preparing seeds and cuttings.
• It's always a good idea to buy a readymade mixture of organic soup and seeds.