To put it another way, hydroponics is the process of growing plants without using soil. The term “hydroponics” originates from the Greek words “hydro,” which refers to water, and “pnos,” which refers to “labor” or “working with water.” standard gardening in the dirt: Each and every leaf of a plant need light, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. Root systems of plants need oxygen, water, and nutrients to function properly. When plants are grown regularly (in soil), water pulls nutrients from the soil and transports them to the plant roots. This is called “normal” plant growth. The roots are responsible for absorbing water and nutrients to support the overall development of the plant. After then, water is able to be replaced by air in the spaces between the soil grains as a result of soil drainage. This provides a supply of oxygen to the roots. Hydroponic gardening: When growing plants using hydroponic methods, the nutrients are dissolved in the water. A “growing media,” also known as a soil replacement, is used in place of soil. This medium is what maintains the roots in place while also providing them with water, nutrients, and oxygen. You have a number of options for how to provide the nutritional solution to the plants: you may flood the root chamber with it, then drain it out, or you can drip feed it to each plant. These techniques involve the use of a pump and a timer in order to properly distribute the nutrients to the plant’s roots. You may also cultivate the plant roots in the air by spraying them with a fine mist of nutritional solution or by cultivating them by aerating the solution beneath each root mass with an air pump. Both of these methods are viable options for cultivating plant roots. There are, in point of fact, six primary kinds of hydroponic systems that serve as the foundation for all hydroponic farming. wick water culture ebb and flow (also known as flood & drain) drip nutrient film method (also known as n.f.t.) aeroponic culture First, let’s have a look at these six fundamental hydroponic plant growing systems: wick Out of all the possible systems, the wick system is the one that can be constructed with the least amount of effort. It is likewise unmoving and has no other active components. It does not need a source of electrical energy and does not need any extra maintenance. The capillary action of wick material and absorbent grow medium draws nutrient solution from the nutrient reservoir into the grow bed. The nutrient reservoir is located underneath the grow bed. When plants reach a certain size, they may use nutrients at a rate that is more than what the wicks are able to give. culture based on water Another rather straightforward hydroponic technique is the water culture method. The roots of plants develop as they are floating in a nutritional solution as they grow. The support structure, which is often constructed of styrofoam and floats directly on top of the nutrient solution, is used to cultivate the plants. The nutritional solution as well as the oxygen are delivered to the plant roots via an air pump. The primary drawback of using a water culture method is that it is not optimal for growing huge plants or plants that are kept for an extended period of time. both up and down (or flood and drain) The hydroponic ebb and flow system works by momentarily flooding the grow tray with nutrient solution and then draining the solution back into a reservoir. This process is repeated many times during the growing process. In most cases, the pump is required to be immersed and is linked to a timer. The ebb and flow technique is adaptable to work with many different types of growth material. Grow rocks, gravel, or granular rock wool may be used to fill the full space in the grow tray. You may utilize individual pots that have growth media already inside of them. This makes it simple to relocate plants inside the system, as well as bring them into or take them out of the system. dripping apparatus (recovery and non-recovery) Drip systems are perhaps the sort of hydroponic plant system that is used the most often. In essence, a timer regulates the hydroponic pump that supplies nutritional solution to the drippers that are situated at the base of each plant. The unused portion of the solution drains away via a recovery drip system and is collected in a tank for later use. Runoff is not collected by a non-recovery system, hence the water that results from that runoff is wasted. “n.f.t.” stands for the nutrition film technique. Another one of the most common hydroponic setups is this one. A tube or tray contains the plant roots, and a continuous flow of nutrient solution is pumped from a tank so that it may flow over the roots of the plants and then return to the tank. The majority of the growth medium is air, with the addition of soil or another substance, depending on whether the plant was started from a seed or a cutting (usually rock wool or perlite.) aeroponic The hydroponic aeroponic systems are perhaps the most advanced kind of hydroponic farming now available. The majority of the growth medium is composed of air. The nutrition solution is sprayed over the roots at regular intervals while they are suspended in the air. The nutrient pump in an aeroponic system is controlled by a timer in the same way that it is in other kinds of hydroponic systems; however, the timer for an aeroponic system must have a short cycle so that the pump only operates for a few seconds every couple of minutes. The majority of growers nowadays use hydroponic plant systems because they perceive it to be a much more effective approach to provide their plants with water and nutrients. Since the plant’s food and water are sent directly to its roots, it is able to devote more of its energy into growing above the surface, which results in a greater number of leaves, bigger fruit, flowers, and vegetables.