Hydroponics Essay, Research Paper

Imagine being able to grow plants and/or crops everyday of the year in

smaller spaces without the use of any soil. Hydroponics is a soiless

agriculture that does just this. The idea for the use of plant growth without

any soil was developed in the eighteen hundreds. Hydroponic gardening is an

old idea yet new methods have been formed to give you three hydroponic

gardening options. These three options are defined by uses of different

mediums. Fifteen to twenty minutes of care per day can produce beautiful

plants and enough food to feed one family a day. Hydroponic environments

are indoors so weather changes do not effect them. All mediums use certain

solutions which vary with different types of mediums. Hydroponic

environments are easy to build and easy to take care of and the advantages

are great. This form of agriculture is one of man’s simple yet helpful ideas

that can better the earth and it’s people.

Hydroponics is a soiless agriculture that was originally used for

growing plants in the winter. Hydroponic agriculture is also known as soiless

agriculture, nutriculture, or chemical culture. Hydroponic plants can be

gardened in several different ways. Hydroponics uses different nutrient

solutions to ensure better plant life. Plants need nutrients and moisture to

survive and soil provides this. When hydroponic gardening is used these

necessities increase and the plant lives a fuller and more beautiful life.

As it was already mentioned, the advantages of hydroponic gardening

are great. It was also already mentioned that hydroponic gardening reduces

the amount of space used and can be grown all year long. But this is only the

beginning of the advantages of hydroponic gardening. People who have

hydroponic gardens don’t have to put up with soil-borne pests and diseases

and they don’t have to pull any weeds. Food crops grow and mature at a

much faster rate in non-soil mediums than in soil mediums ( a medium is any

surrounding substance or environment ex: soil, dirt, sand, or water ) this

produces greater amounts of produce or surplus. Fertilizer and water are

saved with the use of a non-soil medium because they can be reused. Also

the competition between roots is eliminated. All and all the plants energy is

spent more on the vegetation and flowering process because the mediums

provide more air.

The concept of Hydroponics was originally retrieved from the ancient

civilization called the Aztecs. The Aztecs’ had floating gardens which circled

their great city. These rafts were called chinampas which grew vegetables

and flowers. In the sixteen hundreds early scientists tried to copy this idea

and were only some what successful but found that the purpose of soil was to

hold plants upright. Soon scientist in the eighteen hundreds modernized these

old ideas. In 1860, Professor Julius von Sachs discovered ways to make a

nutrient solution that could be dissolved in water and plants could live in

successfully. Only until 1936 did the first hydroponic garden grown become

grown. It was grown by W.F. Gericke and J.R. Travernetti of the University

of California.

There are three methods used to grow hydroponic gardens. These

methods are separated by which medium growth occurs in. The first method

is called water culture. Water culture is a method where plants grow in water

or in water and a nutrient solution. The next method is called sand culture.

Sand culture is the growth of various plants in sterile sand using water and a

nutrient solution. The last method is called aggregate culture. Aggregate

culture replaces sand and uses gravel, vermiculite or other such substances to

grow plants also using water and nutrient solutions. All of these methods can

grow almost any type of plant. Other substances that are used in hydroponic

growth include perlite, rockwool, geolite, crushed rocks, bricks, shards of

cinder blocks, and Styrofoam. Currently new methods are being formed to

grow plants in different hydroponic environments. Some new forms of

hydroponic gardening include suspending the roots of a plant in the air of an

enclosed chamber. The plant is then misted every day with a nutrient

solution.

Hydroponic plants require very minimal care. To build a hydroponic

environment takes a little more work than the care of these plants, but not

much. A container in which hydroponic plants grow in is called a hydroponic

unit. Almost any container will do to make a hydroponic unit. One can make

a hydroponic unit, basically, in three ways. One can make the first

hydroponic unit by neatly scraping a circle indentation in the cork and then a

hole in the middle where the indentation was. Then the simple plant is placed

through the hole. The plant is then secured by cotton wadding and is placed

in a container of water or a nutrient solution. The second way is to take a

container and fill one third of it with water or nutrient solution. Then leave a

small space above this and place wiring above it. Then place aggregate or

sand above and plant the plant(s). The third way is to fill a container with

sand or aggregate and make a hole in the bottom of the container. Then one

should place a wick through

the bottom of the container. Next place the container on two blocks in a tray

of nutrient solution. One must be sure the wick can absorb the solution.

These are how hydroponic gardens and/or environments are made.

Their are many different variations in the mixtures used to make

nutrient solutions. Most nutrients are in a commercial salt form which can be

dissolved in water to form solutions. Some people just don’t want to bother

with the hassle of creating their own solution so they just buy a pre-made

nutrient solution. For example many people buy a solution called earth juice.

Earth juice is a plant diet used in sterile mediums. Nutrient solutions are

extremely important in the growth of a hydroponic plant. The nutrients

provede, mainly, growth and structure for a plant. This is exactly why one

cannot go and plant a plant in plain old sand or rock. These mediums don’t

have any nutrients they just proved support for the plant. There are several

different types of nutrients used in the growth of plants in regular soil that are

essential to a plant. These nutrients are nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium,

calcium, magnesium, sulfur, iron, magnese, zinc, boron, and copper.

Each nutrient a plant uses is essential and has a purpose usually

different than another nutrient received by a plant. Nitrogen is essential in

building the composition of the plant by growing leaves and thickening stems.

Phosphorus is much like nitrogen because it helps the growth of roots and

stem but, more importantly it helps in the growth of flowers and fruits.

Potassium is used by a plant’s cells when energy is being absorbed during

photosynthesis ( photosynthesis is the process in which plants convert

sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into energy ). Potassium is helped in

absorption by calcium. Calcium also helps the growth of roots. Magnesium

also helps the calcium distribute the phosphorus among a plant and it is a

component of chlorophyll (chlorophyll is the green pigment found in plant

cells and is essential the photosynthetic process). In the production of energy

sulfur is used and it joins the nutrient phosphorus to heighten that nutrient’s

effectiveness. Iron is also another nutrient important in the production of

chlorophyll. Magnese aids in the plants absorption of nitrogen. While energy

is transferred in a plant, the absorption of zinc is necessary to help this

process. Boron is important the growth of a plant but scientists are stumped

as to what it does exactly. Copper is the last nutrient a plant needs and is

used in the production of chlorophyll.

Hydroponics is a method of gardening people are now finding very

useful and effective. It is easier to manage and costs less than the usual

garden price. Hydroponics is almost and ancient idea that could be the future

of gardening and/or agriculture. Although this idea is simple, it can better the

world encouraging more plant growth in smaller spaces. Many people like to

grow their hydroponic plants from seeds. This can work but, if you want

your fruit or vegetable ( if that’s what you grow ) to retain more nutrients and

be a healthier plant, you should transfer soil-born plants into hydroponic

environments. This provides for a cleaner and safer world for humans,

animals, and plants to live in. With scientists still working to better this

method even more, the opportunities for gardening in this method will

become greater. This also ensures that diseases or infestations do not harm

those people who eat hydroponic plants. People who now practice this

technique of gardening usually produce cleaner and healthier plants which can

better the lives of many.