Deciding On A Hydroponic System
The first thing you need to do if you want to set up a hydroponic garden as a beginner is choose a system that works well with your personal needs. Factors that you should keep in mind include the amount of space you have, the kinds of foods you want to grow, how much food you are interested in growing, how much such a system would cost, and the amount of finances you have available to keep the system up and running.
This article will review the 3 simplest setups for beginners: the wick system, the water culture, and the ebb and flow system. Any of these 3 systems can be set up from unique components. However, you can also buy complete kits from hydroponics stores or from online vendors.
Wick Systems
Wick systems are easily the simplest and most basic systems to put into place, as they do not include any moving parts. Within the wick system is a reservoir that contains water and nutrients. On top of the reservoir is a container that contains the growing medium. Both containers are linked through a wick, which is responsible for pulling the water filled with nutrients up toward the growing medium. From there, the water may be absorbed by the plants.
A wick system is a great one for figuring out the basics of hyrdoponics. However, it has some disadvantages; it might not work smoothly if you have plants that are large or that drink a lot of water. Lettuce is one example. This is because the wick will not be able to deliver enough water at a fast enough rate. The system does work very well, however, when growing plants like herbs, peppers, and micro greens.
Water Culture
Water cultures are quite easy to set up for growing food and other plants. With a water culture, the plants are set up in a platform made of styrofoam; this platform sits on the water reservoir, as in the wick method. You will then need an air pump within the reservoir so that oxygen can be sent to the roots of the plants. This system works very well for plants that rave water, such as lettuce, but as a contrast, it is not the best choice for plants that are designed for the long term, such as tomatoes.
Ebb And Flow
The third common hydro system is the Ebb and flow system. It is also the most complex of the three, but at the same time, it is also the most versatile and adaptable of the three systems. The way the ebb and flow system works is through flooding the growing area with some kind of solution before allowing it to drain once more toward the reservoir. To make this happen, you will need a pump that can be submerged as well as a timer.
Perhaps the single biggest advantage of using this system is that you can set up your timer to match the specific watering needs of your plants, depending on the number and size of plants present, the temperature and humidity, and other factors. You can also pot your plants one by one to make things easy to customize or you can set the entire tray up with a single growing medium and plant your seeds directly within the container.
In conclusion, you can make your own hydroponic setup without too much of an investment in time or in money. The three main methods, water culture, ebb and flow, and wick, are designed to give you quick and easy access to this growing hobby.
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