By: Charlene Rennick
What kind of container will best suit your newly rooted plants at a minimum cost to your hydroponic budget for their next step of growth?
If you are still smiling from the money you saved by cloning your plants instead of buying several flats to spread that ground cover from one side of the garden down the entire length of the house, you don’t have to stop. Take a look around at what you have at your fingertips. Various items you have lying around yours or your friends’ garage can become inexpensive, charming pots and reservoirs for your seedlings to flourish into a lush and mature plant.
Aquariums that are collecting dust and haven’t seen a fish since your youngest child was 10, wallpaper trays, a sink you replaced but haven’t managed to get to the recycling depot yet, any wide-mouth basin, plastic plumbing pipe or water flow tubes can be useful. A utility knife can make drainage holes where necessary and some non-toxic silicone can seal any cracks. A wide flat drill bit can be used make a smooth, round hole for your plant inside a piece of plastic pipe. As long as it is clean, water-tight and can hold growing media, it can be used to house a hydroponically grown plant.
In a hydroponic system, the nutrient solution is absorbed from the bottom to the top of plant through the opening of capillaries in the roots. If you are just starting a hydroponic garden and want to experiment without investing a lot of money, try a simple, hand-stirred, self-watering system. There are two ways of designing this.
You can eliminate the need for a growing medium if your plant is light-weight and not top heavy. Need something to suspend the roots of the plant in the nutrient solution? You can recycle those plastic rings from six packs of aluminium cans. This option does not require a growing medium.
If your plant needs the support of a growing medium, (still have those aquarium rocks?), an inner container and an outer one is required. The inner container holds the plant supported by a growing medium. It needs a drainage hole and an opening by which the roots can absorb the water. The nutrient-rich water is contained in the outer tray (you can have several plants in one bigger tray) and the potted plant is placed inside it. The water flow is controlled by the plant’s roots. To avoid bacteria growth and water stagnation, you will need to circulate oxygen through the water in the outer tray. To save on the cost of a pump (is there one from that old aquarium?), you can hand-stir the water daily or blow bubbles through a tube or clean piece of siphon hose to aerate the solution.
Designing your garden should be fun and give you a sense of accomplishment. You can spend more money when you are ready and know the ropes!