Hydroponic Systems Blog

Let's face it - indoor grow light systems for hydroponics are bulky, expensive and use a lot of energy. Plants grow and flower only under certain light frequencies yet current light systems supply some of these frequencies and emit light in unnecessary frequencies wasting power. What we need is a new generation of grow lights, namely LED systems.

LED's, or light emitting diodes, are found in many if not all of our appliances. They are cheap to power and can emit light in all kinds of frequencies. We need a portable LED grow light system that is affordable and energy efficient. Such devices have already been patented but not yet marketed - they are still in the 'testing' phase.

In fact, the United States government is currently experimenting with this kind of light system in the hydroponics garden on the ISS (International Space Station), and with promising results. Hopefully this science will be fully developed soon and marketed to us. It would be only one of the many household items we now have that were developed as a direct result of space research such as teflon and velcro.

Just imagine, grow lights capable of operating on battery power alone and capable of emitting the entire frequency needed for plant growth and flowering... I, for one, can't wait!

November 5, 2006 10:26 - Effective Micro-organisms

I found out about this product from our chiropractor - called EM-X Ceramics. Now I am not affiliated with them in any way, I just wanted to pass along this interesting tidbit of information.

EM-X Ceramics are marketed as a means of creating a balance of anerobic vs aerobic microorganisms by promoting growth of aerobic organisms which can be wonderful for plant functioning. 'EM' stands for 'Effective Micro-organisms'. Use of this product is not just limited to agriculture or hydroponics, it can also be applied to various medical and industrial applications.

The product is the result of a yeast fermentation to produce lactic acid and phototrophic bacteria and when added to hydroponic nutrient solution, will bond to plant roots in a symbiotic relationship much like the mycorrhizal fungi I spoke about previously. It certainly looks interesting so feel free to check this out at www.emamerica.com.

November 14, 2006 15:51 - Hydroponics fertilizer vs. Commercial fertilizer

In hydroponics gardening systems, the two most expensive items are water pumps and fertilizer. Today I'm talking fertilizer. You may be tempted to use a cheaper commercial fertilizer as your hydroponics nutrient rather than the more expensive hydroponics blend. This is not really a good idea... First, commercial blends generally come in small hard nuggets that take some time to break down and release their nutrients and in hydroponics, nutrient is needed immediately making most commercial brands unusable.

Secondly, commercial brands do not contain all the nutrients needed for a healthy plant - they rely on dissolved nutrients already present in the soil as a supplement. Click here for a comparison of nutrients in different fertilizers compared to a hydroponics blend. As you can see, commercial fertilizers are woefully inadequate when it comes to nutrient value. The one main exception is Miracle Gro. Not only is this produced to be instantly usable (no time release nuggets), it contains a very good blend of nutrients.

Miracle Gro still lacks many trace nutrients but does have a large amount of nitrogen. It would be a good experiment to use Miracle Gro mixed with some fish emulsion and seaweed extract as a hydroponics nutrient solution. It just may work...

November 18, 2006 10:26 - Growing rice in your hydroponics garden

Did you ever wonder how rice was grown? I have, and I've seen pictures and gathered small bits of information here and there and after some research I have learned that rice is absolutely perfect to be grown in your hydroponics garden.

The variety of rice grown in Asia is planted and grown to maturity in flooded fields. First it is germinated in small containers the same as any seedling and after the first 'true' leaf, transplanted into flooded fields. It resembles a grain plant such as wheat, develops brownish flowers and later become seeds which is the rice we eat.

It matures in 3 to 6 months and shortly after seeds form the fields are drained which hastens plant maturity. When pods are fully developed the plant is picked and threshed the same as a grain to separate the seeds from the plant and then the seeds are dried for use. Rice containing some of the outer pod is brown rice and rice with no pod becomes white rice.

So how would we grow this hydroponically? An ebb and flow system is especially suited for growing rice. First, buy some rice seeds from any of the many online sources, then germinate them in an ebb/flow hydroponics system, periodically flooding the system with nutrient solution. Rice is slow to germinate taking as long as 2 weeks to a month so have patience.

Once the first true leaf forms, set the timer to flood the system for 12 hours, drain and immediately reflood for another 12 hours, over and over. Once seed pods form, reset the system to flood periodically keeping the growing medium slightly damp but not saturated. After 2 weeks of this, harvest the pods and press them through a colander to separate the rice from the plant. Finally, spread the rice out on a screen until dry and it is ready to cook with...

November 22, 2006 16:42 - Make a water fountain into a hydroponics garden

Have a water fountain in your home? I'm talking about a small mechanical-type waterfall or some kind of water fountain that pumps water up and over a rock or plate allowing the water to splash back down to the base of the fountain. If you do, you are very close to having a ready-built hydroponics garden.

To survive, plants need water, oxygen, light, nutrient and adequate temperature. A home water fountain fulfills 3 of these requirements: water, oxygen and adequate temperature. Water is recycled and aerated by splashing back into the base of the fountain so all you really need is a good light source and nutrient in order to have a hydroponics garden. Simply add hydroponics fertilizer to the water and position the fountain near a window or under artificial grow-type lights and you have a fully functioning hydroponics garden!

Of course you still need something to grow... In this case I would float plants in the base of the fountain allowing the roots to hang into the water. You can use small wooden platforms or pieces of styrofoam with a hole drilled through the middle of the float in which to insert a plant. What to plant? Lettuce or spinach would be perfect or any kind of low growing herb. I may just try this out myself...