How to Prepare a Hydroponic Garden

The first thing to know is that a hydroponics garden is one that involves plants grown in water or grown in rockwool and that growing plants in such an environment require special attention. In order to be sure that your garden is a success there are a few things to know and there is a certain amount of preparation that is necessary. You will need the plants, the water, and fertilizer.

The plant itself is one of the most important aspects of a hydroponic garden. Either you can start your garden from a pre-existing plant or you can start it from a seed. With the proper care, just about any plant in existence can be grown hydroponically. Water is the most commonly used medium for this type of gardening however, it is not able to support a growing plant against the effects of gravity. As a result, there are a number of different methods that are used instead.

Tomatoes are the most common starters for these types of gardens and they make a good example of the need for support. A small container works well in this instance. The supports for the stems can vary depending on the type of plant you are growing. It can be anything from plastic straws, ice cream sticks; you can even use stiff wire. You will want a container that is going to provide enough room for the plant to grow but not be so large that it is difficult to care for or manage. Smaller plants should be placed in smaller containers while plants that get larger or even several plants as once can be placed in larger containers.

When you are starting out it is a good idea to consider getting containers slightly larger than you will think you need. Overestimating in this instance is better than underestimating. You can also consider transplantation however; this is a more advanced aspect of hydroponic gardening. In order to begin on your hydroponic garden after you have obtained the containers is to fill the containers with water.

To begin with, keep your hydroponics to the simplest method possible using only water rather than mixing water with perlite or rockwool. The water should be clean but it does not have to be distilled water. In fact, you actually want to have minerals in your water, as these will help to provide nutrients to the plant. IT should however be free of organisms so you will want to sterilize it by boiling or microwave the water first then allow it to cool back to room temperature.

You will need some way to aerate the water. This means some way to get air into the water on a regular basis not only to keep the water moving but also to provide oxygen to the plants themselves. A pump and filter such as those used for fish tanks works but they do have these items designed specifically for hydroponics. These would be the best for this application.

You will also need some way to provide light to your plants. While some plants do not need to obtain energy through photosynthesis most plants, do so you will need to provide adequate lighting for your plant. It is best to provide between 8-10 hours a day of natural light but you can use artificial lights. There are lights that are made for use in hydroponic gardening that can provide an adequate replacement. In addition to light plants, also need nutrients.

You are going to want a good supply of nutrients including nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, a normal fertilizer is going to have these nutrients in it but they may not be suitable for hydroponics. The formula needs to be fairly precise. This is to prevent the nitrogen from burning the plant. This means premixed is usually better and it should contain the following nutrients in per 25 gallons of solution. In teaspoons one of potassium phosphate, four of potassium nitrate, seven of calcium nitrate, four of magnesium sulfate, half of a teaspoon of copper sulfate. In half pints boric acid, manganese chloride and iron sulfate.

Test the water first to see how much of these are already present in the water before getting the fertilizer. Finally, use a thermometer to make sure the temperature of the water is kept constant. These materials can help you on the way to hydroponic gardening.

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