The Perfect Hydroponic System

by: Charlene Rennick

Starting a hydroponic garden can be a daunting task.  There is a wide range of hydroponic systems to choose from, each tailored to suit a particular goal for indoor gardening, and unique to the kind of crop it is designed to grow.  Many different people with a hydroponic system will tell you that they have one that is perfect, yet none of these people have operations that are the same.  To give you a better idea of what you may need, here are some guidelines to think about when you are making the decision to start a hydroponic garden. 

Make sure you understand the design of the hydroponic system and that the expense fits in with your budget.  Because there is such a wide range of materials available, the system does not necessarily have to be expensive.  Your hydroponic garden should be low stress.  Along with it being friendly with your bank account, it should be as automatic as possible and as low maintenance as it can be. 

Do your research; some techniques are not suitable for all kinds of crops.  Make sure that the hydroponic equipment you choose will support the kind of growth you intend to cultivate.  By way of an example, the Raft system is great for growing lettuce or leafy herbs.  It supports the plant in water with a light weight, buoyant material such as Styrofoam.  This would not be appropriate for tomatoes because the weight of fruit would upset the balance the plant needs for stability.  One of the attractions of hydroponic gardening is that is requires little in the way of water so be sure to determine that your nutrient mixture stretches as far as it can.  Different plants require different ratios for sunlight, air flow, temperature and water; various methods cater to these variables.   

According to many hydroponic enthusiasts, the easiest and most popular system of hydroponic gardening is a constant drip method of serving the nutrient enriched water to the plants.  The root system is supported by a rockwool slab growing media.  This type of hydroponics works well for heavier plants, such as tomatoes and peppers.  Heavy produce-bearing plants need more support at the roots to offset the weight of their fruit.   Once the fruit begins to form, the top of the plants are assisted with strings to strengthen the stability at the top of the plant.  This is called air-layering.  The ripened fruit is harvested from the bottom of the plant, first.  Outdoor-grown cherry tomatoes are braced by a stake.  Air-layering is the hydroponic version of the soil-based tomato stake.  The vines are wound around each other and coiled around the strings.   

The most popular hydroponic methods all share two main characteristics; they are low-maintenance and simplify the maintenance of whatever kind of garden the grower wishes to tend.  If you satisfy these two criteria for yourself, then you have the perfect hydroponic system.