How to Grow Hydroponic Plants

Hi guys,
Someone told me that there's a technique called 'Hydroponic Growing' which doesn't include any soil.
He said that the plants grow much faster this way.
Is it true, and what do I need to start?

Thanks!

Hi Shir! There is a technique called hydroponics, and here's what I know about it and I dabbled in it many years ago and abandoned it.

The premise is it uses no soil, and instead uses inert mediums such as rock wool, clay pebbles, sand, coconut hulls and others as the "soil" for the roots to grow in. There are also techniques that don't involve any mediums and the plant is held upright in a netted cup and the roots just grow in water. The water must be oxygenated and not allowed to go anaerobic. It requires buying special fertilizers that have all nutrients in a ionic or chelated form, ready to be taken up by the plants roots without the aid of microbial activity. There are microbial and fungal products on the market to put some biological activity in the water. That's my simple layman definition of the gist of how it works.

I abandoned hydroponics because it is not sustainable and is a treadmill of buying manmade inputs - it requires purchasing special fertilizers to make it work. I was never able to achieve healthy plants that weren't always under attack from either pests or various viral, bacterial, or fungal infections. The plants had weak immune systems and were of poorer overall health compared to plants I grow now in biologically healthy soils and have little pest and disease pressure. The hydroponic plants I grew did appear to grow faster than soil grown plants, but to me it was like artificial steroids for humans - the growth was there but was gained by artificial means and wasn't healthy plant growth. I grow healthy plants now using techniques aligned with nature instead of against it and I'll never go back to hydroponics. Hope this helps!

The best setup I have done is a 55 gallon drum cut down to about 25 gallons. I use one creek minnow in it to grow duckweed and keep the mosquito larva out.  If you keep it in %50 shade it will grow double the duck weed everyday above 78 degrees. The duckweed likes still water. I have been wondering about the tilapia setups where they use a drum with fish habitat to feed the plants.  There is a thread here somewhere I seen a guy with a portable tilapia setup.

Shir, you have been given some great explanations.

We have a forum called Aquaponics:  https://permies.com/f/106/aquaponics

This forum has some information on hydroponics.  Here are some threads that might help:

https://permies.com/t/28033/Hydroponics

https://permies.com/t/64459/Starting-Hydroponics-Order-Transition-Aquaponics

I grow hydroponics using the "Kratky Method" It is a set and forget system with no circulation system. I use tanks made from 2 x 6 lumber, 32" x 48" will grow 24 nice deep green/red lettuce heads every 6 weeks. Sure you have to buy a 3 part fertilizer but the bags i bought will last a few years growing 100 a week. My geese and chickens love them, especially in the off season. Cuts down the feed bill, sell enough to make a little cash too.
Mine is modeled after the "Bialecki Farms"  set up on Youtube. You can review the comments section for more details.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za9LsCmV-mE&t=66s

Hi! I am new to this whole online chat thing. I want to know the best ways to grow my own stuff from home, and in my limited research I came across the topic of hydroponics, however I didn't dive too deeply. I will do more research... but in the meantime does anyone know of a product that can help me grow my own stuff in my home because I am not crafty like Christopher is.

Nicole Wesley wrote:Hi! I am new to this whole online chat thing. I want to know the best ways to grow my own stuff from home, and in my limited research I came across the topic of hydroponics, however I didn't dive too deeply. I will do more research... but in the meantime does anyone know of a product that can help me grow my own stuff in my home because I am not crafty like Christopher is.

Welcome to the forums, Nicole.
I would second James' cautions that hydroponics is a relatively fussy and expensive method for someone with limited growing experience.  If you're not up for cutting a barrel in half, you could also get frustrated trying to maintain pumps for aeration, or find the right fertilizer mix for each type of plant, let alone disposing of concentrated (and sometimes toxic) leftovers if you get tired of the project.

I find that planting things in dirt outside is far easier for me to keep plants alive.  If you are limited to indoor space, potted plants are relatively easy. All you really need to grow some easy plants is a pot with holes, and a dish or tray to catch water.  Most plants you can buy from a garden center or nursery will already be in a pot, and you can find a dish or bowl to catch water under it.  Then you water it when the dirt gets dry, and occasionally feed it some fertilizer or compost.
Hydroponics basically use porous rocks or foamy stuff instead of dirt, which means you have to constantly provide a nutrient supply along with the water.  The things I've seen grown hydroponically are out-of-season, high-value plants, like hothouse tomatoes, marijuana, or winter salad mixes.  People who want to raise aquatic animals, like fish, shellfish, or ducks, often have a surplus of dirty water that they may want to feed to plants, and may need to create a controlled environment for this to happen all winter.  An experienced grower can fit more plants in a small space this way, especially if you are also depending on artificial grow lights, but it's way more labor intensive.

It will help to define your personal goals, and stay focused on what's achievable with your lifestyle and experience level.  Do you want herbs for cooking?  Food plants?  Just something beautiful and pleasant to tend?  You probably won't be growing cash crops in a small indoor space, though some people do grow their own drugs or medicinal plants.  Some plants survive better indoors than others; you might ask local friends if they have healthy houseplants ready to divide.  Or if you want food, in a small space, maybe consider herbs, bean sprouts, hanging tomatoes, or edible flowers/garnishes.  Just one pot of cilantro or parsley can be a happy-making thing for elegant dinners; mint is nice for summer drinks and desserts.


I googled "hydroponic micro systems" and found a range from $25 to $150 or so, with options that would fit in an ordinary window or shelf space.  

Thank you, Erica. I looked up some hydroponic micro systems online and I saw quite a few complaints about the pump like you mentioned, although the reviews were good overall. https://www.amazon.com/AeroGarden-901070-1200-Harvest-Classic-Black/dp/B01IK7PLZI?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_1#customerReviews. As far as my goals... I think I want to start with herbs and leafy greens, and I've tried a potted plant before but I am still working on my green thumb... My nephew was actually one of my main motivating factors for trying to live more sustainably and make some of my own food. (He's seen a drastic change in his health because he has fresh veggies in his backyard all the time) And he just informed me of another hydroponic system he thinks is cool. But they don't have any reviews... I think it's a startup. It didn't say anything about needing fertilizer or nutrients but it looks easy enough. However, I want to get someone's opinion before I do anything because I'm still a newbie. https://growlocal.eco/ This is the link my nephew sent me a few minutes ago. Let me know what you think

I've tried a few methods.


1) Vertical towers. Basically, drain pipes filled with perlite
https://theheadlesssourceman.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/save-500-make-your-own-vertical-hydroponics-aquaponics-system/

These did okay at first, but the perlite became compacted and the water started draining out the holes rather than down the inside.

would not recommend

Although Bright Agrotech's zip-grow system wouldn't have the same problem as mine, it is a little on the pricey side.

In fact, while we're on the subject, check out their youtube channel!!!  They push their products a lot, but they also have some great info on setting up a system and managing plant nutrients.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdNLE33fcMMW3uYINssFKBQ


2) After that, I tried 2x6 frames with plastic raingutters attached.  (sorry no pics)  Again, grew directly in perlite.  This did pretty decent, especially for leaf lettuce and strawberries.

Main problem was I had the bright idea to drill holes in each level so the overflow would fall to the next layer.  Plus, I cheaped out and didn't buy proper end-caps.  The result was they leaked a lot and wife eventually made me get rid of them.

That could have been fixed of course, but the biggest problem was, like #1, there had to be a pump.


3) My most successful version to date, and one that I intend to continue, was SIP (Sub-Irrigated Planters).  I made mine out of buckets, but you can do almost anything that holds water.  The brilliant part about this is the water wicks up to the plants, so no pump!

I learned about this from AlboPepper's youtube channel, here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/albopepper

He'll give you the basic idea how they work.  One key note to pay attention to is that you need an air gap between the water level and the soil so you don't drown the roots.

I saw somewhere you could do this with reusable shopping bags suspended over a water trough (more raingutter, LOL), but I didn't have much luck.  Probably not a fair assessment though, as I did the experiment on the hot side of the house so plants might have simply baked to death.