Hydroponic gardening allows you to grow massive amounts of vegetables, fruits and succulents within a compact space, ideal for urban and suburban dwellers. Most people think of hydroponic gardens as a simple method of growing plants using a water-based nutrient system and avoiding the use of soil. This may be the broad definition, but the process contains a wide range of variables depending on the available space, budgetary issues and preferred levels of maintenance. Use these five growing tips for hydroponic gardens to make the process clear and build a thriving garden you can appreciate and enjoy.

Tip # 1 - Start Your Plants Off Well

In hydroponic gardening seeds germinate, or sprout, in a growing medium. You need to start with a high quality growing medium in order to give your seeds a healthy start in life. Good choices include:

• gravel
• sand
• peat moss
• expanded clay
• composted bark

Mid-range choices to use if the above are not available include:

• perlite
• oasis
• rockwool

Do not use vermiculite for any reason. This substance often contains fibers of asbestos, posing a great risk to your respiratory health and the health of your family.

Read the specifications on each of your seed packs, and do your best to provide the optimum combination of light and temperature to support germination.

Tip # 2 - Provide the Optimum Light

Check the lighting requirements for each of your plants, and remember that those requirements will change over the course of growth. A good general rule to follow states that plants within the initial growing stages thrive with a higher amount of red spectrum light, while plants in fruit or flowering stages need a higher concentration of blue spectrum light.

Metal halide (or MH) lighting provides the red spectrum and High Pressure Sodium lights (or HPS) help plants in the later stages to thrive. If your budget allows for more expensive modern LED grow lights, the lighting can be adjusted to suit the plant's specific needs and stage of growth.

Tip # 3 - Provide Proper Levels of Nutrition

All types of plants need a wide variety of mineral nutrients to reach optimum growth, including sixteen types of both micronutrients and macronutrients. Be sure to apply these to your hydroponic garden.

Essential micronutrients include:

• B - boron
• Cu - copper
• Co - cobalt
• Fe - iron
• Zn - zinc

All of these minerals are required in trace amounts, whereas plants need a larger amount of macronutrients, such as:

• N - nitrogen, for foliage growth
• P - phosphorus, for root growth and the blooming process
• K - potassium, to increase disease resistance
• Ca - calcium, to generate shoots and new roots
• Mg - magnesium, to create chlorophyll and induce photosynthesis

Tip # 4 - Keep Disease and Pests Away

Hydroponic gardeners still battle pests and look for ways to ward off plant disease. Maintain a clean growing environment in your hydroponic garden to avoid these issues, and select hardy plants. Preserve an adequate temperature and maintain good levels of ventilation to keep plant disease and pests away from your garden. Also remember to watch the plants closely through every stage, and act quickly when a problem arises.

Tip # 5 - Prune Regularly

Pruning is an important part of maintaining a clean growing environment. Use a pair of clean, sharp scissors to remove chewed leaves or those with signs of disease, as well as clipping any diseased sections of roots. Pruning leads to fuller plants that use energy efficiently to produce more shoots and help your hydroponic garden to thrive.

Mimic Nature

Plants grow best in conditions that mimic the natural intake of nutrients. Your hydroponic vegetables will thrive when you recreate nature. Because different plants absorb nutrients in unique ways, hydroponic gardeners must understand and implement a nutritional system that echoes the natural system of each plant.

Hydroponic vegetable gardening nutrient systems must be optimized, whereas light, humidity levels and temperature systems tend to remain the same for most common plant types. Remember that nutrient systems must be perfected for optimum growth.

Start with the system mechanisms and adjust as required, based on the type of vegetable. Although these adjustments affect the taste and size of your hydroponic vegetables, the real secret is using the optimum combination of gardening nutrients, including:

• Essential Nutrients for growth - calcium, magnesium, potassium, nitrates (nitrogen and oxygen), sulfates (sulfur and oxygen) and phosphates (hydrogen, phosphorus and oxygen)
• Micronutrients for vegetables - boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, zinc

Continuous nutrition is obtained when the proper nutrients are replenished on a regular schedule. Some advanced hydroponic systems come with automated mechanisms for replenishing nutrients and working on a set schedule. Another smart solution that works for manual replenishment involves setting a timer to alert you when the nutrients need a top up.

Watch the Water

Although your hydroponic vegetables require all of the substances listed above to thrive, nutrients are not consumed at the same rate. This discrepancy can alter the levels of concentration for salt, water and pH, triggering serious issues with the vegetables if not handled immediately.

Always ensure that your system has abundant water. Maintain the pH balance between alkalinity and acidity and keep the salt concentrations levels under control. It may help to use a device designed to measure the nutritional value of substances used in hydroponic gardens.

Watch your pH monitors and use nutrition monitors to ensure the process runs well. Systems operating with a flood/drain method have varying pH and nutrient levels, due to the recycling of unabsorbed nutrients. After nutrient solutions flood the growth tray, all that have not been absorbed are sent back into the nutrient reservoir for recycling. PH levels naturally change with this process, with instability as a result. Prolonged instability triggers toxicities and deficiencies in your hydroponic garden. Watch closely and react promptly when the levels go out of balance.

Improve growth and increase disease resistance in your hydroponic vegetable garden by mimicking nature and keeping a close eye on your system. Your plants will thrive, making hydroponic gardening an enjoyable, successful venture.

Popular Methods

One popular and natural way to combat pest infestation is by introducing beneficial life forms into the system. Certain kinds of fungi and bacteria will push pests out by consuming or crowding them or presenting compounds that are toxic for the insect. These organisms are considered beneficial, as they can deter unwanted pests like spider mites without harming the plants.

Pesitcidal soaps are a traditional method of controlling pests and disease in your hydroponic garden and have been used in all types of garden for centuries. Good quality pesticidal soap includes compounds naturally produced by plants and non-toxic pest controls. No harmful chemicals are left behind once the natural compounds breakdown from exposure to the elements.

Neem oil is used to deter more than 400 different pests often found in soil-based and hydroponic gardens. Spray the foliage to eliminate existing pests and keep away others. Once the insects absorb the neem oil, their reproductive cycles are halted and the pests eventually die off. Commercial pesticides can also work well in hydroponic gardening systems to combat serious infestations.

Common Pests and Solutions

Many pests commonly seen in soil-based gardens also find their way into hydroponic gardens, including:

• aphids
• mites
• white flies
• thrips
• powdery mildew

Pests find hydroponic gardening systems appealing due to the consistent moisture. You can make the area unappealing with organicides and fungicides. Common solutions include:

• sulfur-based compounds for thrips, white flies and mealy bugs
• pyrethrum as produced from flowers
• azatrol for many common pests

Mildew and fungi are often found in hydroponic gardens. Combat these conditions by maintaining adequate ventilation and keeping foliage dry. When spraying insecticide on your plants, ensure the grow lights dry off plant leaves. Plants grown in an aeroponic system may need to be moved indoors temporarily.

Be Careful

Plants growing in a hydroponic system are more fragile than those in soil-based gardens, mainly due to the lack of soil for root anchoring. This makes manipulating foliage and stems more hazardous. Exercise great care when physically picking mites off.

Talk to our trained and knowledgeable staff about hydroponic gardens, including hydroponic gardening equipment and pesticidal soaps and sprays.