If you want to grow plants clean and efficiently then hydroponic garden at home is the process you should go for. But before starting you must know how it works and how to build it properly because if the process is not right you will never get the result that you want.
Here I will discuss how to make a hydroponics garden in the right way. As the growing method of hydroponics is flexible, a proper balance between patience and understanding of the process is a must for it. If you are aware of the basics as well as the primary idea then this article is for you to go deep and start your hydroponics garden.
What is Hydroponic Growing?
It is very important to use water that allows hydroponics best plants to grow. With this process, you have to through the basic way to take care of your plants and by doing this, your plants will never lack anything they need. For proper growth, the plants do have no necessity of soil. Water and the perfect amount of nutrition are what they need the most.
The question might pop up in mind that why grow them in water and not in soil? While you are not using soil there is no chance of pests, fungus, and diseases that cause harm to your plants. This also saves your money as you do not have to make a budget for mediums, fungicides, pesticides, etc.
The Process to How to Make a Hydroponics Garden
Hopefully, the concept should now be clear about the hydroponic garden. Now we will know about a few steps that will indicate how to construct it.
1. Making the Hydroponic System
To hold the water for the garden, you need a hydroponic flood table system and to build it all you may need is wood. Based on how much you want to grow or how to grow hydroponic plants and how much water you will use you have to set the width of the table.
You can use treated lumber to create a rectangle frame while the size of it depends on how much width you need. After making the frame, use a polyethylene plastic sheet to line it so that the water cannot leak. A deep plastic tray can also be used as a flood table.
Now you have to make a floating platform to keep the roots and soil out of the water. A thick Styrofoam can do it for you. Make it according to the size of your flood table. To make sure that the plants can float check the edges that they can move up and down.
With a saw or a cutter make holes that are five to seven cm wide. A plant pot can be useful as a guide. Count your plants and create holes to put them in it and grow. Let the plant pots fit perfectly in the holes and maintain a distance below the platform.
On average, the flood table holds five gallons of water in an hour. But you should never allow the water to stay in the flood table and for that dripping out the water is important. A drip emitter can do the job. How many emitters you need depends on the size of your table. Now push the emitters into the holes and seal them.
Now fill half of the flood table with water. For an indoor garden, you have to set light above the table. Sodium bulbs or metal halide bulbs are perfect for this. If you have the plan to make an outdoor garden then there is no need for extra bulbs as warm climate and sunlight will help the plants.
Now the water needs the best hydroponics fertilizer or necessary nutrients for the plants. You can get plant foods rich in calcium, potassium, and other nutrients at your near stores.
2. Time for Adding Crops
After setting the perfect base it is time to add crops. Leafy greens like kale, lettuce, and spinach are the best plants to grow in hydroponic gardens. Herbs like dill, mint, and basil are also appropriate. Plants that require the same amount of light and water are ideal. Some vegetables can also be grown if you want to expand your garden.
To make potting mixture you have mix one-part coco fiber with eight parts perlites. The climate is a fact for choosing the right kind of mixture. Now put the mixture in pots with holes in the bottom. Netted planting pots can do the same task. Save two-third of the pot after putting the mixture in it.
Use soil cubes as a base for sprouted seedlings and put them in the pot. Now fill the remaining two-thirds of the pot with the mixture, water them, and place them in the flood table. For a floating platform, place the pots in the holes while if there is no platform then the flood table will also work the same.
How to Maintain the Hydroponics Garden
Hydroponic system maintenance is always the key factor no matter you are gardening outdoors or indoor. One gardener should follow the below cautions to keep his plants healthy and fresh.
- Water the Plants: It is mandatory to water the plants every day. In case you see the plants fading then it is advised to water twice in a day. It can be happened because of the lack of air or moisture. If needed you can apply more water to the flood table. But you have to higher up the plants if they started to rot or smell.
- Adding More Plant Food: The drip emitters will drop out the water slowly and it might take at least seven days. When it happens, you have to apply more water and do not forget to apply a new batch of plant food. By doing this the plants will never be out of touch of nutrition.
- Enough Light All the Time: For outdoor hydroponic garden the plants should be in touch of direct sunlight for ten to fifteen hours a day. This will help the plants to grow fast. If you have a hydroponics garden indoor, then set light right above the plants and switch the light on for the same duration. It will be easy for you if there is an automatic system to open up and shut down.
- Harvesting the Garden: Trimming the garden is necessary to keep a clean look. To eat or to use the plants you can shear them regularly. After cutting you can add new plants or replace the existing ones.
A hydroponic garden needs proper care for blooming. This kind of gardening is like a hobby so a bit of effort is needed.
Why You Should Start Growing a Hydroponic Garden
The reasons are many behind the increasing rate of the hydroponic garden. As it takes a little space and can be done indoor, people are getting interested in it. We have listed a few points that are engaging people to do hydroponic garden DIY.
- Grows Fast: The growing formula of hydroponic is so efficient that this plant grows faster than any other. According to the experts, it grows at least twenty percent faster comparing soil plants. That saves time as well as provides results in a quick time.
- No Need of Soil: The best soil for plant is not easy to find all the time. It can also happen that your yard or outside the area have no soil at all. In all these cases you can go with hydroponic as with this you can grow plants without any soil.
- Saves Space: Nowadays you hardly get the space for gardening but who will stop you if you choose hydroponic gardening. You can grow a bunch of plants in a square table or so. There is no need that the roots spread their brunches or collect nutrition from the soil. If you live in an urban area but has the hobby of gardening, hydroponic is your way.
- Huge Yields: It is up to you how bigger the garden you want. Now people are moving to hydroponic as it has many positive sides. The experts and the scientist proved that this kind of garden will give you twenty to twenty-five percent more yields every time. So, if you are planning for gardening then hydroponic might be a wise choice for you.
- Saves Water: As you are setting a flood table there is always water for the plants. This means with a fully loaded table your plants will receive all the water. There is no chance of licking and no need to water the plants. While soil plants waste a lot of water, the hydroponics saves all.
- No Weeds, Diseases, and Pests: Cleaning weeds and do hard work to get rid of diseases and pests are time killing and boring. A hydroponic garden is always weed-free and will give you less pain to fight diseases and pests.
Final Verdict
Hydroponic gardening is the cleanest way to grow plants with strong roots and all the nutrients that a plant may need. Only a little effort will bloom your garden a lot. This way of how to make a hydroponics garden is for all but if you live in an urban area or a soil-less yard, then it will give you the exact feeling of gardening.
After all the discussion above, you have already known that a little take care will be enough for hydroponics. Understanding the process and go through it will give you a garden like the way you want. But remember that the setup is the prime thing and you should take time to build it.
