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Posts Tagged ‘Nutrient’

GrowBot®-2000 from hydrobotanical.com completely integrated plug and play mobile grow room, integrated with Easy Feed System Nutrient Delivery. This water and fertilizer / nutrient / additive system is completely automated, and best of all, requires NO RESERVOIR!

www.advancednutrients.com nutrient feeding, how to adjust your nutrient feeding program for optimal results using Grow, Micro and Bloom in your hydroponics and soilless nutrient programs.

www.advancednutrients.com plant nutrient deficiencies, presents Erik Biksa discussing common plant nutrient deficiencies in hydroponics and organic crops

Nitrogen (N)

The most essential of all nutrients for leaf and stem development. Nitrogen consumption depends on a plants growth cycle and in a vegetative growth phase of plant nitrogen consumption is greatest. Hydroponic nutrients solutions labeled as “grow” or “flower” contains more concentrations of nitrogen. Nitrogen deficiency is the leading cause of plant growth in indoor hydroponic garden systems. Yellowish, soft and weak plants and leaves are tell-tale signs of nitrogen deficiency.

Half-strength nitrogen solutions are ideal for plants between growing phases. This will prevent plant stretch while it’s switching its energy over to flower development. Normal feeding is resumed once the plant reaches the flowering stage.

Phosphorous (P)

Phosphorous plays a major part in root and flower development. Phosphorous deficiency signs are slow and stunted plant growth. Phosphorous is crucial to a plants flowering stage. “Bloom” type formulas contain a 0-50-30 concentration, containing no nitrogen and high levels of phosphorous and potassium.

Potassium (K)

Different in action from the previous two nutrients, it doesn’t feed the plant directly in any specific stage of growth. It merely facilitates plant intake of other primary and secondary plant nutrients. Potassium deficiency cause irregular plant growth and susceptibility to pests and disease. Potassium inhibits fruit production and should be lessened during this stage.

Secondary Hydroponic Nutrients

Calcium (Ca)

Facilitating and filtering the absorption of other nutrients Calcium is one essential nutrient. It is also a natural base that increases the pH level is needed. Commonly used in the vegetative phase of plant growth, calcium consumption is decreased during the flowering stage.

Magnesium (Mg)

Mainly for chlorophyll production in photosynthesis, deficiency causes yellow leaves.

Sulfur (S)

Yellow leaves are a sign of sulfur deficiency and are only used in small amounts.

Iron (Fe)

Used in small amounts, iron deficiency is similar to sulfur deficiency. Yellow leaves are the general signs of deficiency. High pH causes iron absorption problems so constant monitoring is advised.

Molybdenum (Mb)

Mainly for nitrogen absorption and converts nitrates to ammonium

Boron (B)

Facilitates carbohydrate transport in the phloem, it is not essential and maybe disregarded. Boron overdose causes plant kill, it is not found in regular soils and only supplemented.

How to preparing hydroponic Nutrient Solution

Nutrient solution is made of water with dissolved fertilizer. It is preferable to have good quality water to be mixed with the fertilizer, the amount of which is always indicated by the manufacturer. It is very important to check and adjust if necessary pH level of nutrient solution with liquid pH adjusters. Usually, pH level of the nutrient solution depends on the plant; however, most often it is between 6.0 and 6.5 for the majority of the starter cubes, with the exception being Rockwool, which needs pH level of 5.5 to 5.8. Fertilizing young plants, a gardener should use a nutrient solution as weak as ¼ to ½ of the full strength suggested by the manufacturer. Only plants older than two weeks can be fertilized by the full strength nutrient solutions. It is recommended to keep the growing medium moist, but not too wet or soaked with the hydroponics nutrient solution.      

How to Transplant Seedlings

The seedlings should be transplanted when the roots have grown out of the starter cubes. It is just necessary to place the seedling along with the starter cube on top or into the permanent growing medium, which can be any hydroponic growing medium or just soil. 

Notes in taking cutting for clones

Cutting, as a method of plants propagation, works well only if every step of the procedure is done correctly. Otherwise, experiments may result in devastating consequences. Though, when done properly, up to 95-100% of all cuttings grow successfully, it is still may be a good idea to take twice as many cuttings as needed, if you are making first steps in growing cuttings. 

One of the hints to increase chances in successful outcome is to use distilled water, while growing cuttings. Generally speaking, this is one of the most reliable and proven methods of plants propagation, suitable for most of the plants. Other examples of propagation techniques are dividing, air layering, and tissue culture. It is even possible to root cuttings without the use of any growing media in specific hydroponic systems. After forming the first roots, such cuttings are usually transplanted into any type of preferred growing media.

How to hydroponic , systems can be water culture or media based culture either one of these can then be active or passive, regardless of which hydroponic systems you chose you wont need any soil. Some plants you grow will still need a medium to act as an anchor; some of the mediums available are sand, gravel, clay balls and perlite. These mediums do not supply any nutrition to the plant, the plants are feed with a water nutrient solution, in an active system this is delivered by a pump i.e. Ebb and flow also known as flood and drain, and the drip system.

Examples of passive systems are the raft system and possible the easiest is the wick system, the plant nutrient solution is in a static container and the plants can either be suspended with just their tips in the solution or a material is used to make a wick with a very high capillary action which draws the hydoponic nutrient solution up to the tray with the media and the plants in it. The minerals and nutrients that the plants need come from hydroponic plant foods that are now available from garden shops and the internet.

These nutrients come as a concentrate and are mixed with water to the manufactures recommend quantities to form the nutrient solution that is used to feed the plants. Hydroponics is certainly revolutionizing how we grow plants, in Europe many of the flowers supplied to the retail trade are grown this way, there is also an increase in the number of commercial growers learning how to hydroponic to grow a selection of crops like tomatoes and lettuce, the systems they are using can be highly technical, with the strength of the nutrient solution the water cycle and the amount of light the plants receive all being controlled by sensors and computers.

For the home grower learning how to hydroponic can be incredibly simple, the basic home system comprising of a reservoir, a growing tray, an air pump with stone, a simple timer to control a submersible pump to supply the nutrient solution to the plants. Unless you can set your system up in a sunny position to make the most of natural sunlight you will need to add a grow light to your list, this will supply your plant with artificial sunlight it needs to grow. Once you know how to hydroponic you’ll be surprised by what you can grow and the space required.

Operation and Maintenance – See how simple this product is to operate and maintain and why it deserves to be called the world’s favorite nutrient meter.

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Image taken on 2008-04-10 23:08:00 by AndyGoodwin.

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Want to start growing hydroponic lettuce. There are a lot of nutrients out there. Which would be best for lettuce?

I just built a hydroponic setup for my tomatoes. I have a few questions. How high should my water level be? What additive should I use in my water? And how long/often/and at night? should I run my pump?
My medium is going to be Hydroton if that helps at all.