Dig Gardening -- Without The Dirt

Does your garden grow with sunshine, fresh air and rich, black soil?  Not if you’re one of the many gardeners who have discovered the benefits of hydroponics gardening.

Known as the cultivation of plants in water, hydroponics gardening has boomed in popularity.  This is partly due to the scarcity of fertile farmland and shrinking supplies of fresh water.

There’s nothing new about hydroponics gardening.  This method of growing has been abound for thousands of years, and can be traced to the famous Hanging Gardens of Babylon.  This ancient wonder of the world was created with a form of hydroponics.  Since those ancient times, researchers have proven that a number of different aggregates or media could be used in place of black earth to support plant growth.  Hydroponics gardening is just one of many alternatives to traditional soil growing.

Benefits

Many people enjoy the space-saving benefits of hydroponics gardening.  Apartment dwellers and homeowners alike can grow fresh vegetables and plants in the smallest of spaces, even on compact patios and balconies.  Many commercial greenhouses have also adapted hydroponics gardening because of similar space-saving benefits.

It’s been found that, when properly grown, hydroponics plants are healthier and more vigorous. Because no soil is used in hydroponics gardening, the nutrients are more readily available to the plant. Thus, plants are able to mature faster, yielding an earlier harvest of vegetable and flower crops.

The convenience of hydroponics gardening is enhanced by the ability to automate the entire system with a timer. This reduces the actual time it takes for the home gardener to maintain the overall plant growth requirements.  Through automation, the gardener enjoys greater flexibility, and can be gone for periods of time without having to worry about watering the plants.

Raising Healthy Plants

All plants, whether grown with hydroponics or in a traditional soil garden, require the same basic elements: nutrients, water, light and air.  When grown in a traditional garden, your plants will obtain their nutrients and water from the soil.  The nutrient uptake is a little slower, because the soil can impede the roots’ abilities to access what they need.

Without soil, hydroponics gardening is cleaner and easier.  That’s one of the simple joys of this type of gardening.  There is always water and nutrients available, so your plants will never become stressed.  You can build a hydroponics system outdoors to provide natural air and sunlight, or assemble it inside with artificial lighting and air circulation.  Either way, your plants will enjoy optimum health.

To provide artificial sunlight, many hydroponics gardeners use metal halide lamps and sodium vapor lamps in conjunction with incandescent light bulbs.  Specially-designed grow lights or fluorescent bulbs may also be used.

Plants, like all living things, need oxygen to stay alive.  The healthy, white roots of a plant are responsible for delivering all of the nutrients for the plant.  When the roots die, it is impossible for the plant to survive.  Even when all of the other growth requirements are in place, those elements will be useless if the plants are not able to access nutrients through the roots.  Therefore, your hydroponics system requires adequate aeration by way of an air circulation supply.  This technique will mix air throughout the nutrient solution, allowing the plants to draw out the carbon dioxide necessary for natural photosynthesis.

Finally, a sterile medium is required.  There is a selection of media available on the market, from simple gravel to specially made formulations.  Due to the lack of soil, a definite joy of hydroponics gardening that’s particularly exciting for home gardeners is the lack of weeds to pull.  There are also no soil-borne pests to worry about, so diseases caused by these pests are minimized, if not entirely eliminated.

If you love fresh produce but you’re short on time, short on space or simply don’t like getting your hands dirty, discover the many joys of hydroponics gardening.

Author Wyatt Pottoe enjoys writing articles for numerous web sites, on home repair and family matter themes.